"The best part about this is it’s in Washington" - Philadelphia Phillies fans in splits over a controversial strike call that led Bryce Harper to hit a game-tying double

The Philadelphia Phillies finished off a great day by defeating the Washington Nationals in extra innings with a score of 8-7. This was the second game of a doubleheader as the Phillies improved their record to 35-31 after a sweep.

The Nationals were winning by a score of 5-3 against the Philadelphia Phillies going into the eighth inning when one terrible call by an umpire may have helped the Phillies win the game.

"Umpire makes a terrible strike call to keep pinch-hitting Bryce Harper at the plate so he sends the next pitch into the gap for a game-tying double" Jomboy Media

This blown call led to a Bryce Harper double that tied the game up. While the call may not have totally changed the outcome of the game, it certainly benefitted the Phillies. One fan said that the best part about the blown call was that the game was in Washington, Harper's former MLB home.

"The best part about this is it's in Washington" - Zach

After this, the Philadelphia Phillies and Washington Nationals were tied at six going into extra innings. The Phillies scored two runs in the top half of the 10th inning and held on to win by a score of 8-7.

This one call may have changed the game for both sides, and the umpire definitely needs to be held accountable to some extent for the blown call. You cannot have that happen during an MLB game.

Philadelphia Phillies turning things around since firing of manager Joe Girardi

Joe Girardi was fired by the Phillies earlier this season, and the team has improved drastically since.

The Phillies have been on a roll as of late, winning eight out of 10 games to improve their record to 35-31. The hitting and pitching seems to have improved considerably since the firing of Joe Girardi.

Sometimes a firing like this can give the team some more fire and motivation to get things turned around. For the Phillies, this is certainly the case.