The Philadelphia Phillies have a chance to do something on Thursday Night that has never been done before.
Since MLB implemented the new wild-card format, no away team that has lost Game 1 has come back to win the series. The Phillies are hoping to be the first team to do it on Thursday.
According to Underdog MLB, teams that go down 0-1 in the wild-card series are 1-18 overall, with the 2025 Yankees being the only team to trail 0-1 and come back to win the series, but they were at home.
The Phillies look to become the first away team to advance to the Division Series after losing Game 1 under the current Wild Card format.
Overall, teams that lose Game 1 under the current format are 1-18 in the series.https://t.co/1xG60nSUiy pic.twitter.com/8675bTOSuc
— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) October 1, 2026
The Phillies being on the road adds a much more difficult element to what they are trying to accomplish. Oddly enough, the Phillies were a strong road team this season. They went 45-36 on the road this year and 43-38 at home.
MLB implemented the new wild-card format in 2022. Each league has three wild-card teams, with the 3-seed playing the 6-seed and the 4-seed playing the 5-seed in a three-game series. The higher seed hosts each series, and this format has seemingly been a hit since its implementation.
The last time the Phillies and Braves met in the postseason was in 2023. That was in the NLDS, where the Phillies won the series 3-1. The same thing happened in 2022 with the Phillies ending the Braves’ season in four games as well.
There is no question the Phillies are comfortable playing Atlanta in the playoffs and are playing with house money in this series.
Phillies/Braves Game 3 Preview
It will be all hands on deck for both teams come Thursday Night. The Phillies will start Aaron Nola, and the Braves will use reliever Ray Kerr as their opener.
With everything on the line in this game, you can assume both pitchers will be on short leashes, with just about everyone on both staffs available to go at least an inning.
Zach Wheeler is expected to pitch at some point for the Phillies. As is their closer, Jhoan Duran. As for the Braves, there is even a chance we see Chris Sale at some point. He started Game 1 on Tuesday and could come in late.
The Braves had the Phillies number during the regular season. They beat them in 9 of the 13 games.
At the end of the day, this is one game for all the marbles. It will be fun to watch and interesting to see if the Phillies can set NLWC history by winning back-to-back games in Atlanta.
Phillies Looking to Set NLWC History in Game 3