ATLANTA — Adam Morgan was humming along Friday night in his hometown, but said he didn’t have a problem leaving the game after throwing six solid innings.
The Phillies trailed 2-1 at the time and as the seventh inning began, interim manager Pete Mackanin sent Chase d’Arnaud up to the plate to pinch-hit.
Morgan had allowed six hits, two runs and struck out three without issuing a walk, but the boss was more interested in scoring rather than preventing the Braves from plating more runs.
"If your team is winning and you have a good offense, you leave him in," Mackanin said after the Phils' 2-1 loss to Atlanta (see story). "You just got to take advantage of everything you can."
Morgan, who grew up in Marietta, a northern Atlanta suburb, has allowed just 17 walks in 84 1/3 innings this season, but he was done in Friday by doubles.
Three batters after Nick Markakis led off the bottom of the first with a single, rookie Adonis Garcia doubled to center field to score the game’s first run.
In the third inning, Freddie Freeman slugged a one-out double and scored on Cameron Maybin's single two batters later.
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Morgan said he was fine with Mackanin’s decision to pull him.
“I still felt good,” he said, “but absolutely [d’Arnaud's] definitely a better hitter than I am. I understand the logic. I’m not mad about it.”
d’Arnaud singled and was eventually cut down at the plate on Odubel Herrera’s bunt later in the seventh.
"Now, my bench is dwindling but I've got to use every opportunity I can to try for maybe a double or a home run," Mackanin said of his decision. "[Morgan] could have gone back out."