J.T. Realmuto delivers with his arm and bat as Phillies salvage third game of series with Padres

SAN DIEGO — Fernando Tatís Jr. is hard to catch.

The dynamic Padres star has stolen 21 bases this season, and when he drew a two-out walk from Cristopher Sánchez in the seventh inning Sunday, everyone at Petco Park knew he was about to try for his 22nd.

Tatís, representing the go-ahead run for the Padres, got such a good jump that at first, Phillies manager Rob Thomson didn’t think they had a prayer of catching him.

But J.T. Realmuto has the quickest pop time in baseball, and he fired a strike to Trea Turner to gun down Tatis for just the third time this season.

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“That’s what J.T. does,” Thomson said. “He’s a great athlete and comes up with some amazing things. And I thought Trea did a nice job on the backhand with the catch and tag. That was a big out.”

After helping preserve the tie with his throw, Realmuto came up to the plate the next inning and powered the Phillies to a 2-1 win. His RBI double in the eighth helped prevent the San Diego sweep as the Phillies headed into the All-Star break on a high note.

“I think everybody needs a break right now,” Thomson said. “I just think we’ve been grinding. There haven’t been many games where you felt really comfortable. Everything’s been a close game, whether we’re down, whether we’re up. I think everybody just needs a little break.”

Realmuto is hitting .432 in July. While the home runs haven’t been there — his last homer came on May 21 in Colorado — he has been collecting singles and doubles by simplifying his approach.

“Just trying to get good pitches and put the barrel on the ball,” he said.

He got a good pitch to hit in the eighth.

Bryce Harper, who had barely missed a home run earlier in the game, was on second after hitting a one-out double to the opposite field against Padres reliever Adrian Morejon. But Nick Castellanos struck out swinging on a 3-2 pitch a foot out of the strike zone for the second out.

Realmuto then worked a 3-1 count against Padres right-handed reliever David Morgan and sent a hanging slider to center field that Jackson Merrill had to chase down. Harper came around to score the Phillies’ first run of the series against the San Diego bullpen.

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Sánchez pitched with some traffic on the bases — the leadoff hitter reached three times — but he escaped trouble by leaning on his changeup. The Padres loaded the bases in the first inning on a single and two walks, but Sánchez struck out Jose Iglesias on a changeup to end the inning without damage.

“I’m just so proud of him from where he started where he’s at right now, not just stuff, but command, poise, and composure,” Thomson said. “He gets through the first inning there, and when we first had him, he’s not getting through that first inning. It might affect the rest of his outing. Now, he’s learned to slow the game down, be able to handle adversity, and keep grinding.”

The Padres’ only run came in the sixth inning. Sánchez gave up consecutive singles to Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts before a blistering hit from Iglesias got by Bryson Stott for an RBI single.

Sánchez was sent out for the eighth to secure one more out and obliged, inducing a line out from Luis Arraez.

The lefty finished the first half with a 2.50 ERA. He was not named an All-Star because of the Phillies’ rotation schedule, although the organization did activate the bonus clause in his contract for an All-Star selection.

So instead of heading to Atlanta, Sánchez said he will be resting for the second half at his home in New Jersey.

Orion Kerkering took over for Sánchez in the eighth and had shaky command, allowing a single and a walk. But following a mound visit from Caleb Cotham, Kerkering settled in and induced two fly outs.

“Kerk struggled a little bit with his control early, but it seemed like he found it and got out of that situation. So that was good,” Thomson said.

Matt Strahm earned the save, but also not without some drama. He walked pinch-hitter Jake Cronenworth on four pitches to put the tying run aboard to open the inning, and the Padres moved him into scoring position with their third sacrifice bunt of the game. Strahm then walked Tatís to put the winning run on first, but Arraez lined out to left field to end the game.

“In my opinion, the break usually helps a team like us that has a lot of guys that play every day and a lot of starters that pitch a lot of innings,” Realmuto said.

After the Mets’ loss to the Kansas City Royals on Sunday, the Phillies will enter the second half in first place in the National League East by a half-game.