The Phillies exploded for five home runs in a 7-0 victory over the Astros in Game 3 on Tuesday night to take a 2-1 series lead in the World Series.
Bryce Harper got the party started with a two-run shot in the first inning off Lance McCullers Jr. and immediately called Alec Bohm over from the on-deck circle. That sparked some conversation, then Bohm was one of four other Phillies hitters to go deep off McCullers in the game – a World Series first.
There was some talk about McCullers tipping pitches, which even the broadcast mentioned and asked both Harper and Bohm about, but both hitters played it coy, as they should. However, one former Phillies player and World Series champion had a great theory as to why McCullers must’ve been tipping pitches.
Nick Punto joined the Audacy Original Podcast “Baseball Isn’t Boring” and explained why there's “no doubt” that McCullers was tipping pitches and what gave it away for him.
“Here’s a pro tip: there’s no doubt about it he’s tipping pitches because left-handed hitters don’t talk to right-handed hitters and right-handed hitters don’t talk to left-handed hitters,” Punto said (7:12 in player above). “So for Bryce Harper to say something to Bohm, that doesn’t make any sense unless it’s a glove tip early, early enough that it makes sense for both left-handed and right-handed hitters, in my opinion.”
It’s a great point by Punto. Usually, you might see some same-handed hitters talking to each other about picking up spin on a ball or pitch sequence. For a left-handed hitter to talk to a right-handed hitter there must be something more going on.
“Left-handed hitters obviously get pitched differently than right-handed hitters,” Punto continued. “It’s almost like two different, offense and defense, you don’t really talk to each other.”
Now while there’s no hard evidence that McCullers was – or wasn’t – tipping pitches, there have been some social media sleuths with theories on a leg lift or a bent knee giving it away. But Punto explained why that’s not really possible given the camera angles the broadcast provides.
“In fairness, nobody really can unless we have that dead view straight on him where the camera never changes, we never see it break away from the centerfield camera to the home plate camera,” he said. “You would need just a single camera on him to see glove tilt, glove angles, wider glove, is he fanning on a changeup. There are so many different things, but the things I’ve seen on the internet are, to me, asinine. I think it’s just people making stuff up. You’d have to have the batter’s box view or the catcher’s view, if you will, to actually pick something up.”
Harper and the Phillies have been red-hot in this postseason, especially at home, and they deserve some credit as well. They took advantage of some middle-in pitches by McCullers and kept at it all night long.
“I think five home runs is a lot. Two of them were early – two of them were first pitch – which, you know, Bryce Harper’s a free swinger. That first home run, he’s just a free swinger, he got something middle of the plate, he’s red-hot. Who knows if that was a tip,” Punto said. “What set everybody off was the fact that Bryce Harper called Bohm over. That kind of set everybody off. I really don’t know if he was tipping. Maybe he was. Maybe he wasn’t. I do think five home runs is a lot, but these guys are red-hot. They’re swinging the bat great.”
Tipping or not, the Phillies took a 2-1 series lead on Tuesday night and have Aaron Nola on the mound for Game 4 on Wednesday night.
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