PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Trea Turner flailed at a four-seam fastball well out of the strike zone and slammed his bat in anger after another strikeout.
Remember that time Phillies fans rallied in 2023 to give Turner a standing ovation and he used that moment to spark his season?
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Philadelphia Phillies' Alec Bohm dodges an inside pitch during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sánchez throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
Philadelphia Phillies center fielder Justin Crawford catches a fly ball hit by Tampa Bay Rays' Junior Caminero in the third inning of a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper gestures from first base after hitting a single during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
That wasn't the case Friday night in Philadelphia.
Turner dropped his helmet in the third inning and was soundly booed by a restless crowd of 40,133 fans, as was Brandon Marsh after a similar ugly whiff in the fourth, and as were the Phillies after another punchless game at the plate cost them in a 2-0 loss to the AL East champion Tampa Bay Rays.
Freddy Peralta and four relievers combined to throw four-hit ball in the shutout that kept the magic number at two.
The plastic tarp that circles the top of the clubhouse lockers in anticipation of a champagne celebration remained rolled up as tight as the Phillies seem to be of late. A playoff berth that seemed a lock just days ago will come down to the final two games.
The Phillies entered the game leading Arizona by two games for the final NL wild-card spot with three to play. The Phillies would have clinched their fifth straight playoff berth with a win against the Rays and an Arizona loss to San Diego.
The Phillies instead dropped their third straight game and delayed a potential clincher at least until Saturday, when they will throw a bullpen game at the Rays. Should the race come down to Sunday, the Phillies will be forced to throw ace Zack Wheeler, which would burn him for potential Game 1 or 2 starts in the NL Wild Card Series.
If they get there. The Diamondbacks would pull within one game with a win late Friday night.
“I guess I'd rather be in our spot than theirs,” Phillies interim manager Don Mattingly said. “We can still control our own destiny.”
The Phillies high-priced sluggers usually wait until the playoffs start until their bats freeze up. They got a jump on it down the September stretch.
The gut punch came in the sixth when Turner and Bryce Harper led off with consecutive singles. Alec Bohm meekly grounded out but advanced the runners. Bryson Stott lined out to second base and pinch hitter Bryan De La Cruz lined out to shortstop against reliever Cam Booser.
Oh, and 35-year-old catcher J.T. Realmuto is in an 0 for 32 funk that's dipped his average to .206.
The Phillies were shut out for the 12th game this season, have scored two runs over the last 27 innings and have homered only once in their last 55 innings.
All that has helped the Phillies spiral to 13 losses in the last 21 games (nine of the last 14).
It gets worse. NL batting leader and starting second baseman Luis Arraez is out indefinitely with a severely sprained left ankle. All-Star lefty Jesús Luzardo has yet to throw a simulated game as he tries to come back from a three-week absence with shoulder inflammation.
Call it Dread October.
“We control our own future,” Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber said. “That's what we want. I wouldn't want it any other way. It's on us to decide what happens.”
Mattingly said there was a pregame team meeting but offered little specifics. He insisted his team wasn’t wilting from the pressure.
“These guys have been through it,” Mattingly said. “I feel OK. If we’ve got to tell guys at this point that it’s urgent that we win games, then we’re in trouble. The urgency, everybody knows. It’s pretty much right in your face. We’ve just got to go out and play good baseball.”
The Phillies — who had the fourth-highest opening day payroll at $282 million — are drumming up talk around the city of joining the short list of the most egregious collapses in franchise history.
Take your pick.
More modern? The 2023 Phillies were up 2-0 and 3-2 headed home for Games 6 and 7 in the NL Championship Series only to blow the series to Arizona.
Prefer a classic story? Consider 1964, when the Phillies lost 10 straight games to blow a 6 1/2-game lead and the NL pennant with 12 games left. They wouldn’t make the playoffs again until 1976.
“I think there's a lot of confidence, still,” Schwarber said. “Sure, there's frustration. We want to win baseball games.”
Just win one more game this season, and the situation won’t be that dire.
Just watch the Phillies play this week and it’s getting harder to find when that next W might come.
See AP’s full MLB coverage here
Philadelphia Phillies' Alec Bohm dodges an inside pitch during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sánchez throws in the first inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
Philadelphia Phillies center fielder Justin Crawford catches a fly ball hit by Tampa Bay Rays' Junior Caminero in the third inning of a baseball game, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper gestures from first base after hitting a single during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, Sept. 25, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Laurence Kesterson)
France is working on a draft United Nations Security Council resolution backing freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a U.N. diplomat said Friday.
The resolution would reaffirm the need to respect freedom of navigation in the strait, a flashpoint in the war in Iran, citing its importance for global shipments critical for food and energy security, the diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity because discussions on the measure have been private.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s top cleric issued a rare statement, calling on the kingdom’s troops to defend the country from neighboring Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
In New York, where the wars in Iran and Gaza have dominated the U.N. agenda, the leaders of Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt were scheduled to address world leaders later Friday.
Here is a look at the latest news from the Middle East. More coverage of the U.N. General Assembly is available here.
The proposed U.N. resolution would recall the need to respect the Law of the Sea and support peaceful initiatives aimed at ensuring safe passage in the strait, the U.N. diplomat said.
Iran’s disruption of the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil and gas transited before the war, has emerged as its main point of leverage. The effects have been felt far beyond the Middle East and pose political problems for U.S. President Donald Trump and his Republican Party ahead of November’s midterm congressional elections.
Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the topic on the sidelines of this week’s annual U.N. gathering of global leaders, the diplomat said. It also was discussed with Arab nations and Iran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed Friday that Tehran put forth a seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks on its nuclear program if the U.S. meets the conditions it has laid out.
Talking to reporters at the U.N., Araghchi said the plan was delivered to Washington through Qatari mediators on the sidelines of the General Assembly.
“If the necessary conditions are met, the strait can be reopened and normal maritime passage restored within seven days,” he said, adding that seven-day clock would begin when the U.S. accepts the plan. “The choice now rests with the United States.”
The White House said earlier Friday that U.S. officials are having positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war
With Saudi oil facilities, cities and ships off its coast coming under escalating attacks, the kingdom's top religious authority has called on soldiers to be prepared to defend the country from Iran-backed Houthis.
Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh al-Fawzan, who traditionally avoids weighing in on politics in a country that holds enormous influence among Muslims worldwide, issued the strongly worded statement. Al-Fawzan addressed his message to soldiers defending the kingdom's borders and members of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis in Yemen, peppering it with Quranic verses and religious edicts.
“Protecting this great nation, guarding its borders, defending against aggression and punishing those who want to harm any inch of it is one of the greatest duties,” he said.
The head of Yemen's internationally recognized government, Rashad al-Alimi, likewise urged Yemenis to rally behind Saudi-backed armed forces and allied groups in their fight with the Houthis.
Al-Alimi, who chairs the country’s Presidential Leadership Council, also called on Yemenis fighting alongside the Houthis to defect, announcing a general amnesty.
Al-Alimi said the aim of the fighting is to restore his government’s control over Sanaa, the capital, which the Houthis seized in 2014.
His call to arms came during his first speech since his Saudi-backed forces were routed from the western Red Sea coast by the Houthis’ lightning advance on the city of Mokha and islands in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, where 12% of the world's trade passes.
The swift Houthi advances raised questions about the effectiveness of the Saudi-backed forces in the face of the disciplined, well-armed Houthis. The Houthi assault exploited divisions among the Saudi-backed forces and distrust among its leaders, leading to a chaotic troop withdrawal before the fall of Mokha.
Al-Alimi’s speech came on the 64th anniversary of the military coup that ousted the monarchy ruling northern Yemen, rooted in the Zaydi Shiite sect to which the Houthis also belong. The Houthis battled Yemen’s central government for years before sweeping down from their northern stronghold and seizing Sanaa.
The first joint meeting of the military chiefs of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey was held in Riyadh on Friday, following the signing of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement by the three countries, Pakistan’s military said in a statement.
The chiefs of defense forces and chiefs of general staff from the three countries reviewed the regional security situation and threats facing Saudi Arabia, according to the statement.
“They strongly resented the attacks targeting the Holy City of Mecca and civilian and economic infrastructure,” the statement said.
The military chiefs also praised the vigilance and professionalism of the Saudi armed forces in ensuring the safety of the people and security of the kingdom, it said.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday in a post on X that Tehran supports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s call for a return to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding and renewed diplomacy between Iran and the United States.
Pezeshkian said he appreciated Xi’s “thoughtful and responsible support” for resolving differences through dialogue and diplomacy, adding that Iran backed returning to the understanding and honoring previously agreed commitments.
The post came a day after Pezeshkian met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. Sharif said Pezeshkian told him the Islamabad memorandum remained “fully acceptable” to Iran and that Tehran was ready to take it forward.
The 14-point memorandum, mediated by Pakistan and signed in June, provided a framework for ending the conflict.
In a statement approved by its 15 members, the U.N.’s most powerful body condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and against commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The council called for “practical cooperation,” including with Yemen’s internationally recognized government, to prevent the Houthis from obtaining weapons, military material and training enabling them to carry out attacks.
It reminded all countries of their obligation to implement the U.N. arms embargo against the Houthis.
Israel’s military said two of its soldiers were killed in northern Gaza on Thursday while inspecting an unexploded Israeli drone near a military post. They were the first Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza in months.
Five other Israeli soldiers have been killed since last October’s ceasefire that attempted to halt a more than two-year war between Israel and the militant Hamas group.
While the heaviest fighting has subsided, almost daily Israeli fire has continued. Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes and frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones and have killed 1,408 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.
This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.
A young man holds a Saudi flag while standing through the sunroof of a vehicle during celebrations marking Saudi Arabia's 96th National Day in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)
Palestinians walk amid war-damaged buildings in Gaza City, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
This image taken from undated video released by the Ansar Allah Media Office, the media arm of Yemen's Houthi rebels, on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026, shows, according to the group, Houthi fighters firing rifles during clashes with Saudi-backed forces at an undisclosed location in Yemen. (Ansar Allah Media Office via AP)
Men perform the traditional Saudi sword dance known as the ardah during celebrations marking Saudi Arabia's 96th National Day in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Baraa Anwer)
