Philly Leader

Johan Rojas made a costly mistake in the Philadelphia Phillies' 7-5 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night at Truist Park. During the second inning, an avoidable error occurred when Rojas watched a routine fly ball hit by Austin Riley drop in front of him without making a move to catch it. Right after Edmundo Sosa impressively stopped Marcell Ozuna's home run in the first, Rojas and Sosa both had the opportunity to catch Riley's fly ball, which had an extremely low expected batting average.

In a mix-up, Sosa shouted at Rojas, misleading him into thinking the ball was being called for. As center fielder, Rojas was tasked with taking charge in such situations. "That’s my responsibility over there," Rojas acknowledged. "That ball is mine. I have to catch it. There’s no excuse."

After the confusion, Phillies manager Rob Thomson highlighted Rojas's role, stating, "Rojas is a captain out there, and he's got to take charge." The mishap extended the inning, allowing the Braves to capitalize with a three-run home run by Sean Murphy, ending Zack Wheeler’s streak of 13 games with noteworthy pitching stats.

The Phillies managed to take the lead back momentarily, with Kyle Schwarber hitting a significant home run against Chris Sale. However, despite Schwarber’s efforts, the Braves tied the score again in the sixth, then surged ahead due to Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering allowing a run in the seventh.

Reflecting on the play's impact, Thomson commented, "It changed everything." Expressing his frustration, Wheeler added, "Things like that happen, you’ve got to keep the focus." Sosa, through an interpreter, emphasized the importance of making critical plays, stating, "At the end of the day, we missed that play and Wheels was having a great game." The Phillies continue to emphasize the need for flawless execution in their bid for success.