Year In Review: Phillies Rally Against Marmol

This is a 2010 Year In Review. This is one top moment that appeared on Phillies Nation.

Top Moments on Phillies Nation #25 and #24 came on comebacks after Brad Lidge blew a save. Number 23 involves another blown save, only this time it was not Lidge. The Phillies were on the other end.

At Wrigley Field, Cole Hamels and Randy Wells were tossing a pitcher's duel. Hamels finished the night after seven strong innings, allowing only one earned run. The lone run came on a suicide squeeze, laid down by Ryan Theriot, which scored rookie Starlin Castro.

Hamels was solid, but the offense had difficulties scoring. A lack of run support was very common in 2010. Then again, so were late inning rallies.

With Carlos Marmol closing, Greg Dobbs, Wilson Valdez, and Chad Durbin due up, the game appeared to be over. Dobbs popped up. Brian Schneider pinched hit for Valdez and drew a walk. Ross Gload, who substituted for Durbin, also drew a walk. All of a sudden, the Phillies had two men on base, including a runner in scoring position. Down by one run, there was certainly hope.

Marmol was extremely erratic, but struck out Shane Victorino for the second out. One out away from defeat, the Phillies had to rely on Placido Polanco, who was fresh off the disabled list. Polanco came through like he did so many times in 2010, delivering a game-tying RBI single. Schnieder looked to be a dead duck at the plate, but thankfully Geovanny Soto could not handle the ball.

Marmol's problems did not end there as he failed to locate the strike zone. A wild pitch enabled Gload to score from third and give the Phillies a lead. Marmol walked Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, and Jayson Werth before finally being removed for James Russell.

Raul Ibanez finished off the scoring with a RBI single of his own to make it 4-1. Brad Lidge wasn't going to let this one slip like Marmol, as he converted the save.

The comeback against the Cubs was just one of many late-inning rallies for the Phillies. Their never-say-die attitude showed that there was no reason to give up on them. There were many nail-biters, but there were also shocking comebacks like this one. It may not have been the prettiest win, but it was good enough for a 2010 top moment.

Other Top Moments

April 12: Phillies home opener. The Phillies had a five-run fifth inning, which included a Chase Utley home run. The Phillies beat the Washington Nationals, 7-4.

Ryan Howard extension: Howard's five-year, $125 million contract.

Francisco's Homer Makes Up For Lidge

It was fitting that Ben Francisco caught Alfonso Soriano's fly ball to end the game. After all, Francisco played hero by picking up the pieces for an offense that continued to struggle with runners in scoring position, and a closer that failed at a save attempt.

The Cubs were the first to get on the board. Jake Fox's RBI single in the third and Soriano's sacrifice fly gave the Cubs a 2-0 lead.

J.A Happ allowed only two runs, but wasn't the J.A we're used to seeing. He lacked command, but wiggled out of jams. He gave up seven hits, walked four, and struck out three in six innings. A couple key double plays helped Happ avoid further damage as the Cubs left a total of 12 men on base throughout the evening.

On the other hand, Rich Harden was dealing. He was perfect through five innings. In the sixth, Carlos Ruiz drew a huge walk. Not only did it end the perfect game, but Jimmy Rollins followed with a home run to end the no-hitter and the shutout. The homer tied the game at two.

The Phillies were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base. However, an important run came without a hit. Ruiz drew another big walk. Shane Victorino was plunked, and Chase Utley walked to load the bases.

Surprisingly, Lou Pineilla did not have a left-handed pitcher ready to face the Phillies lefties. Instead, he left it up to Carlos Marmol, who was having trouble finding the strike zone. Patient, Ryan Howard drew a walk to bring the run home. The Phillies took a 3-2 lead.

Lidge has the highest earned run average and the most blown saves among any reliever in baseball. The Phillies would have liked some insurance. Ruiz came close to it-- well, not really. Ruiz hit a fly ball to left field that was clearly foul. Originally, the umpire ruled it fair, but it was reviewed and overturned. Ruiz grounded out to end the inning.

Lidge started the ninth by walking Kosuke Fukudome. With the wind blowing in, the Cubs played small ball, and Ryan Theroit bunted him over. Next, Milton Bradly singled which drove in Fukudome. It tied the game at three, and Lidge blew another save. Lidge didn't give up anything else, so the game headed to extra innings.

Tyler Walker and Scott Eyre did a tremendous job keeping the game knotted at three. In the 11th, it looked like Milton Bradley won the game for the Cubs as he started his trot around the bases. Victorino lined up against the ivy wall and made the catch. Walker and Eyre got hitters out and gave the offense a chance.

Kevin Gregg left a curveball in Francisco's wheelhouse, and he drove a bomb into the left field basket. The Phillies took a 4-3 lead in the twelfth inning on Francisco's twelfth home run of the year. Francisco now has more homers in the month of August (2) than Utley, Howard, and Raul Ibanez combined (0).

Chad Durbin finished with the save to secure the 4-3 win. It was a long night filled with a range of emotions, but the Phillies pulled this one off.