Sosa’s Pinch-Hit Grand Slam in Ninth Lifts Phillies Past Angels in Dramatic Comeback

Edmundo Sosa launched his first career grand slam with two outs in the ninth inning Friday night, lifting the Philadelphia Phillies to a 5-3 comeback victory against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim. The dramatic pinch-hit blast off Sammy Peralta traveled 404 feet to center field, well beyond the reach of Angels center fielder Mike Trout and erasing what appeared to be a lost cause moments earlier.

Wade Meckler had seemingly sealed a Los Angeles victory with a spectacular running catch on Bryson Stott’s sinking fly, leaping into the waist-high wall and extending his glove into the crowd to rob Stott of a three-run homer. Instead, consecutive baserunners allowed the Phillies to load the bases and chase closer Ben Joyce from the mound, setting the stage for Sosa’s heroics.

Philadelphia’s success marked the franchise’s first go-ahead grand slam with two outs in the ninth inning since Shane Victorino accomplished the feat in 2009. Bryce Harper contributed to the Phillies’ surge by extending his on-base streak to a career-high 30 games with a fourth-inning bunt single, while the club improved to 2-2 on its nine-game West Coast road trip and moved within one game of the Cubs for the top National League wild-card position.

Angels starter Reid Detmers surrendered one run across six innings on eight hits in a solid performance undermined by another bullpen collapse. The Angels fell to 0-5 in their losing streak, managing just three hits overall—one coming after the first inning—despite Meckler driving in a run during a three-run opening frame marred by two wild pitches from Phillies pitcher Andrew Painter.

Painter recovered from his difficult first inning to retire 15 consecutive batters over five scoreless innings. Jonathan Bowlan earned his second save by recording the final out, striking out Adam Frazier after Angels runners reached base. The Phillies will send All-Star Cristopher Sánchez (16-4, 2.62 ERA) to the mound Saturday against Angels right-hander Ryan Johnson (3-7, 5.75 ERA).