DENVER _ So much had conspired Sunday against the Phillies before Cameron Rupp attacked a hanging slider thrown by one of the best relievers in baseball. Weird things happen at Coors Field.
And that is how the Phillies, finally, won their 40th game. Aaron Nola threw a pitch down the middle that was called a ball. Two Phillies runners were eliminated at home plate in the game's last two innings.
This 3-2 victory over the Rockies that halted a five-game losing streak was bizarre, maddening, and somehow a testament to a young roster's ability to survive several gut punches. Rupp beat Greg Holland with a two-run double to the gap just one inning after he was out by 20 feet at home.
Another painful one-run loss became one of the season's finer wins. The surging Rockies had been 59-0 this season with a lead after eight innings. Now they are 59-1. The Phillies, who flew to Georgia for a series against the Atlanta Braves, do not play again until Tuesday.
"You have more time to savor it," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin quipped.
They savor every time it is Nola's turn to start. They had a chance to win it in the ninth Sunday because Nola navigated seven innings. It marked just the third time in the last 23 games that a Phillies starter logged seven innings. Nola authored two of those games.
He has a 3.12 ERA in 1121/3 innings this season. His last nine starts have yielded a 1.76 ERA.
The task of pitching here, a mile high and against this potent Rockies lineup, is enough of a challenge for a young pitcher. Nola limited Colorado to two runs in seven innings. It was a great outing. But, as he departed the field, Nola stared down home-plate umpire Carlos Torres. Nola wanted better.
He deserved better.
With two outs and the bases empty in the seventh inning, Rockies pinch-hitter Raimel Tapia worked a full count. Nola threw his 97th pitch, a change-up that floated outside, and lost Tapia. That brought Charlie Blackmon to the plate.
Nola started the All-Star outfielder with a first-pitch curveball for strike one. He came set and paused to disrupt Tapia's timing at first. Blackmon stepped out of the batter's box. Tapia dashed for second. But Torres did not call time. Nola threw a curveball that was right down the middle. Torres called it a ball. Tapia safely slid into second.
"After I threw the ball," Rupp said, "I looked at the scoreboard and it said, 1-1."
The catcher could not believe it.
"You called that a ball?" he asked Torres.
"Yeah," Torres told him.
"How?" Rupp said. "It was right down the middle."
Torres told Rupp he blocked his view of the pitch when he rose to throw to second base. The Phillies dugout chirped at Torres. The at-bat, which should have been at an 0-2 count, was 1-1. The whole encounter was altered.
"It's a big difference nowadays," Nola said. "He definitely missed that call. It should have been 0-2. He made me pay for it and they scored that run."
Blackmon took two more pitches for balls. He lashed a 3-1 change-up to the gap for a double to score the go-ahead run. Nola induced a groundout for the third out. He stared at Torres and the two exchanged some words. Larry Bowa yelled at Torres from the dugout. The 71-year-old bench coach was ejected.
"But that one pitch," Rupp said, "you can't let that determine the game."
A half inning later, third-base coach Juan Samuel waved home Rupp, the team's slowest runner, on a double to left by Andres Blanco with no outs in the eighth inning. He wasn't close to scoring. The Phillies loaded the bases but failed to score.
"Juan really felt bad about that," Mackanin said. "It happens. He's been good for us all year. I'm not going to be critical of that. Having coached third many years, I've done it myself. I wanted to crawl in a hole. I have full confidence in Juan."
Odubel Herrera hustled for a double to begin the ninth. He was thrown out at home on a grounder to short because he hesitated. Mackanin did not fault Herrera; the ball had to travel past the pitcher and Rockies shortstop Trevor Story made a perfect throw.
Rupp, the next batter, absolved everyone's sins with one swing.
