J.T. Realmuto did as much as he could, hitting for the Phillies' first cycle since 2004, but they came up just short in a slugfest in the desert, losing 9-8 to the Diamondbacks in Monday's series opener.
It briefly looked like they made a dramatic ninth-inning comeback when Kody Clemens appeared to hit a go-ahead line-drive homer off the foul pole in right field with two outs, but replay showed it clearly hit the top of the railing in foul territory.
Clemens struck out a pitch later and the Phils lost an entertaining series opener to the first-place D-backs.
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Realmuto came to the plate to lead off the ninth inning not just needing a double to become the first Phillie since David Bell to hit for the cycle but also to get the tying run to the plate. He crushed a ball to left-center against Arizona reliever Miguel Castro and scored on Bryson Stott's two-out single to bring the Phils within a run.
They lost and are 32-34. The Phillies have the worst road record in the National League at 13-23. They've also lost 13 of their last 16 games in Arizona.
This is a very good Diamondbacks team. They've won six in a row and are 41-25, four games ahead of the Dodgers in the NL West. They've won three of the four games against the Phillies this season with three more to go this week.
Realmuto hit a solo home run in the second inning to start the scoring and tripled in Trea Turner and Nick Castellanos to put the Phils ahead in the third. He singled with two outs in the fifth and walked with two outs in the seventh.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies' lineup had a productive night and it started early with a run in the second inning and four more in the third. They brought a four-run lead into the bottom of the third inning when the Diamondbacks scored two runs on a two-out single. D-backs manager Torey Lovullo was ejected in the frame after arguing the Phillies intentionally hit Corbin Carroll, who was hit by Matt Strahm in both plate appearances.
This was another night where the Phillies were hurt by their lack of a competent fifth starter. It is true that many teams lack fifth-starter stability. The Dodgers team that just left Philadelphia is using an opener in multiple rotation spots. But it's also true the Phillies are 3-10 in games started by their fifth starter, whether it's a traditional starting pitcher or an opener. They're 29-24 in all other games. Yunior Marte, Dylan Covey and Andrew Vasquez each allowed two runs over 4⅓ combined innings.
The series continues Tuesday night at 9:40. Zack Wheeler opposes Zach Davies, a hittable right-hander with a 4.95 ERA and 1.45 WHIP who's walked 4.0 batters per nine innings the last three seasons.