PHILADELPHIA — Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto homered, and Aaron Nola struck out seven to help the Philadelphia Phillies clinch their first NL East title since 2011 with a 6-2 win over the Chicago Cubs on Monday night. I think having home-field advantage and having a bye is going to help us quite a bit.” Philadelphia won five straight NL …
PHILADELPHIA — Ryan Howard swung and stumbled, belly flopped onto the dirt, then hobbled a step or two before he crumpled to the ground in pain. For 11 years, Howard’s groundout in the season’s final at-bat served as a flashpoint for a franchise that briefly ruled the NL East, only to fall into a chasm of bad baseball and meaningless …
HOUSTON — When the Philadelphia Phillies fired manager Joe Girardi after a 22-29 start to the season, it was hard to imagine that Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and interim manager Rob Thomson would be dancing in a champagne shower come October. The video board at Minute Maid Park displayed the team’s logo and the words: “Congratulations Philadelphia” as the Phillies …
