LOS ANGELES (AP) — With the Philadelphia Phillies facing elimination, the team's struggling big three saved the season in a big way, at least for another day.
Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Trea Turner combined for seven hits and five RBIs to lead the Phillies to an 8-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday night in the best-of-five NLDS.
Schwarber got back his postseason power, hitting a pair of home runs — including one that left the stadium. He now has 23 career postseason home runs, third all-time.
The Phillies are still down 2-1 in the series and face another elimination game on Thursday. If they win, they’ll send the series back to Philadelphia for Game 5.
And it all started with Schwarber's big swing that went 455 feet over the right-field pavilion in the fourth inning to tie the game at 1. Then Harper and Turner got in on the act, too.
“We want to go in and do our job everyday,” Harper said. “Any time we have Kyle going or Trea going or myself or anybody else, we’re going to win games. I think we all know that. When we’re not doing our job, we’re probably not going to win many games. That’s something we need to do (Thursday), come in, do our job, have fun and enjoy it. Obviously, it’s a great opportunity to play this game. We have a lot of fun doing it.”
The big three were 7 for 13 with five RBIs, four runs, two walks and Turner’s two stolen bases.
Schwarber’s first shot was unmistakably the potion the Phillies needed from the top of their lineup. The Phillies scored three runs in the fourth, took a 3-1 lead and never looked back.
“Ridiculous how far that ball went,” Turner said of Schwarber’s solo shot. “I just think the vibes, the energy it’s something to build off. Sometimes, it’s hard to create your own momentum. You’ve got to build off things like that. No better way than a ball leaving the stadium.”
Harper and Schwarber were 1 for 15 with eight strikeouts in the first two games of the series.
The Phillies still have work to do as only two teams have ever come back from a 2-0 deficit to win the NLDS.
But with hitting becoming contagious for Turner, Schwarber and Harper, the Phillies found hope.
Schwarber had a two-run shot off Clayton Kershaw in the eighth after Turner singled leading off.
“I think just trying to get back and respond there after they score a run is a big thing for us,” Schwarber said. “That’s something we have a knack for here. That’s something that’s never going to leave us. We have to keep that same feeling, that same fight, but it’s just nice to get the answer back.”
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper, right, is tagged out at home plate by Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith as he tried to score on a single from Alec Bohm during the eighth inning in Game 3 of baseball's National League Division Series Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Philadelphia Phillies' Kyle Schwarber celebrates after hitting a solo home run during the fourth inning in Game 3 of baseball's National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Uganda’s presidential election was plagued by widespread delays Thursday in addition to a days-long internet shutdown that has been criticized as an anti-democratic tactic in a country where the president has held office since 1986.
Some polling stations remained closed for up to four hours after the scheduled 7 a.m. start time due to “technical challenges," according to the nation's electoral commission, which asked polling officers to use paper registration records to ensure the difficulties did not “disenfranchise any voter.”
President Yoweri Museveni, 81, faces seven other candidates, including Robert Kyagulanyi, a musician-turned-politician best known as Bobi Wine, who is calling for political change.
The East African country of roughly 45 million people has 21.6 million registered voters. Polls are expected to close at 4 p.m. Thursday, according to the electoral commission. Results are constitutionally required to be announced in 48 hours.
Impatient crowds gathered outside polling stations expressing concerns over the delays Thursday morning. Umaru Mutyaba, a polling agent for a parliamentary candidate, said it was “frustrating” to be waiting outside a station in the capital Kampala.
“We can’t be standing here waiting to vote as if we have nothing else to do," he said.
Wine alleged there was electoral fraud occurring, noting that biometric voter identification machines were not working at polling places and claiming there was “ballot stuffing.”
“Our leaders, including Deputy President for Western Region, arrested. Many of our polling agents and supervisors abducted, and others chased off polling stations,” Wine wrote in a post on social media platform X.
Museveni told journalists he was notfied biometric machines were inoperable at some stations and he supported the electoral body's decision to revert to paper registration records. He did not comment on the allegation of fraud.
Ssemujju Nganda, a prominent opposition figure and lawmaker seeking reelection in Kira municipality, told The Associated Press he had been waiting in line to vote for three hours.
Nganda also noted biometric machines were malfunctioning, in addition to the late arrival of balloting materials, and predicted the delays likely would lead to apathy and low turnout in urban areas where the opposition has substantial support.
"It’s going to be chaos,” he said Thursday morning.
Nicholas Sengoba, an independent analyst and newspaper columnist, said delays to the start of voting in urban, opposition areas favored the ruling party.
Uganda has not witnessed a peaceful transfer of presidential power since independence from British colonial rule six decades ago.
Museveni has served the third-longest term of any African leader and is seeking to extend his rule into a fifth decade. Some critics say removing him through elections remains difficult, but the aging president’s authority has become increasingly dependent on the military led by his son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
Museveni and Wine are reprising their rivalry from the previous election in 2021, when Wine appealed to mostly young people in urban areas. With voter turnout of 59%, Wine secured 35% of the ballots against Museveni’s 58%, the president’s smallest vote share since his first electoral campaign three decades ago.
The lead-up to Thursday's election produced concerns about transparency, the possibility of hereditary rule, military interference and opposition strategies to prevent vote tampering at polling stations.
Uganda's internet was shut down Tuesday by the government communications agency, which cited misinformation, electoral fraud and incitement of violence. The shutdown has affected the public and disrupted critical sectors such as banking.
There has been heavy security leading up to voting, including military units deployed on the streets this week.
Amnesty International said security forces are engaging in a “brutal campaign of repression,” citing a Nov. 28 opposition rally in eastern Uganda where the military blocked exits and opened fire on supporters, killing one person.
Museveni urged voters to come out in large numbers during his final rally Tuesday.
“You go and vote, anybody who tries to interfere with your freedom will be crushed. I am telling you this. We are ready to put an end to this indiscipline,” he said.
The national electoral commission chairperson, Simon Byabakama, urged tolerance among Ugandans as they vote.
“Let us keep the peace that we have,” Byabakama said late Wednesday. “Let us be civil. Let us be courteous. Let’s be tolerant. Even if you know that this person does not support (your) candidate, please give him or her room or opportunity to go and exercise his or her constitutional right."
Authorities also suspended the activities of several civic groups during the campaign season. That Group, a prominent media watchdog, closed its office Wednesday after the interior ministry alleged in a letter that the group was involved in activities “prejudicial to the security and laws of Uganda.”
Veteran opposition figure Kizza Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate, remains in prison after he was charged with treason in February 2025.
Uganda opposition presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, known as Bobi Wine, right, greets election observers, including former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, at his home in Magere village on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)
Billboards of Uganda President and National Resistance Movement (NRM) presidential candidate Yoweri Museveni are seen in Kampala, Uganda, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Samson Otieno)
Electoral workers deliver ballot boxes to a polling station during presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Voters are reflected in a police officer's sunglasses as they wait in line after voting failed to start on time due to system failures during presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Voters wait to cast their ballots during the presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
