Phillies Win in Walk-Off Homer

For once, the Philadelphia Phillies got to enjoy a game-ending home run.

Travis Lee homered with two outs in the ninth inning and Johnny Estrada connected leading off the 10th, rallying the Phillies over the Florida Marlins 5-4 Sunday. The Phillies stayed a half-game behind Atlanta in the NL East. The Braves also rallied in the ninth and beat New York 5-4 in 11 innings. "This team continues to ride the rollercoaster, up and down," said Phillies manager Larry Bowa, who was ejected one batter before Lee connected. "One thing that hasn't changed is this team keeps battling until the end."

Earlier this season, Bowa watched his team lose five games by walkoff homers during a 15-day span.

"We have had a lot of nail-bitters before. We know what it's like to walk off the field with your head down. This was our turn," he said.

Lee homered twice in going 4-for-4. His solo shot on a 3-1 pitch from Marlins closer Antonio Alfonseca tied it in the ninth. Lee's 18th homer gave Alfonseca his sixth blown save in 33 chances.

Estrada, who had entered in the 10th inning as a catcher, led off the bottom half. He hit an 0-2 fastball from Juan Acevedo (1-4) over the right-field fence for his eighth homer of the season.

Estrada's ball landed in the Phillies' bullpen, which erupted into a wild celebration that included pitcher Eddie Oropesa launching a chair into the air.

As he rounded second base, Estrada was laughing in enjoyment.

"It was like someone told me the funniest joke I'd ever heard in my life," Estrada said. "I just started cracking up. It was an incredible feeling.

"I didn't know if it was a fastball or slider. I just know it was middle-in and if you know me, I always hack at that pitch."

Acevedo concurred that Estrada got a fastball.

"It wasn't supposed to be there," Acevedo said. "It was supposed to brush him off the plate a little."

Bowa didn't get to see one of the most dramatic comebacks by the Phillies in recent memory.

Or did he?

Bowa was ejected by home plate umpire Bill Welke. Bowa, who had argued with Welke twice in the early stages of the game, erupted after Marlon Anderson was thrown out in the ninth for arguing a called third strike.

"Let's put it this way: I saw both home runs and it wasn't on the TV," Bowa said.

Jose Mesa (3-3) worked a hitless 10th inning to earn the win.

If Philadelphia wins the NL East, the Phillies will likely have the Marlins to thank. The Phillies are 13-3 against Florida this season, including a 10-1 mark at Veterans Stadium.

"It seems like everything happens to us in this ballpark," Florida manager Tony Perez said. "In the ninth inning, we thought things were going our way."

The Marlins took a 4-3 lead in the eighth on consecutive home runs by Preston Wilson and Mike Lowell. They connected after Ricky Bottalico retired the first two batters in the inning.

Wilson tied it with his 22nd homer and two pitches later, Lowell hit his 16th.

The Phillies took a 1-0 lead off Ryan Dempster in the first on Anderson's RBI single. Later in the inning, Bobby Abreu was thrown out at the plate by Wilson.

Florida it at 1 in the second on Derrek Lee's RBI single off Brandon Duckworth.

Jimmy Rollins scored on Abreu's groundout in the third to give Philadelphia a 2-1 lead. Mike Redmond's sacrifice fly tied it at 2.

Notes:
Anderson's ejection was his first of his career. Bowa's ejection was his fifth of the season. ... Marlins 2B Luis Castillo, who severely sprained his left ankle, did not play. ... SS Alex Gonzalez was scratched from the Marlins' starting lineup with a sore left elbow. He was available to pinch-hit. ... Derrek Lee has a career-high 10-game hitting streak. ... Florida's Cliff Floyd had his 10-game hitting streak snapped. ... Duckworth hit three batters in 6 2-3 innings. ... The Marlins hit back-to-back homers for the fourth time this season. ... Rollins stole his NL-best 45th base.

(Copyright 2001 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Article continues below

---

advertisement

---

Author: 6 ABC - Action News