The Philadelphia Phillies came up short on Wednesday night against the Milwaukee Brewers. It was a failed attempt to clinch a postseason berth, and now the Phillies will have to keep battling with just four games left in the season.
Ahead of that final push, Phillies beat writer Matt Gelb shared some insight into the starting rotation over the next couple of games. They’re going to give the ball to Andrew Painter on Thursday. After that, Cristopher Sanchez will pitch on Friday, but depending on whether or not the Phillies have clinched, his start could be shortened.
“Phillies will start Andrew Painter on Thursday and Cristopher Sánchez on Friday. Both are on regular (four days’) rest. Sánchez’s could be shortened if they’ve clinched; it still puts him on track for G2 of Wild Card,” Gelb wrote on Wednesday night.
Painter, a rookie, has had a rollercoaster of a season. He struggled immensely to open the season, and they sent him down to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to try and sort himself out. He seemed to do that well, and he’s been much better since his return to the Phillies.
Since his return on July 31st, Painter has pitched in 10 games. During that stretch, he’s pitched at least 6.0 innings in four outings and held opponents to 3 earned runs or fewer in 7 games. It hasn’t been perfect, but much better.
Sanchez, meanwhile, remains in the running for the NL Cy Young Award. He has a 2.93 ERA in 200.0 innings. He also has a 1.215 WHIP and 9.9 strikeouts per nine. With that, he’s cemented himself as one of the best pitchers in the entire NL.
How the Philadelphia Phillies Can Clinch
It’s been a bit of a struggle lately for the Phillies. They’ve gone just 5-5 in their last 10 games. With that, they’ve let the competitive NL field keep up with them in the Wild Card race.
As it stands now, the Phillies are 87-71 on the season. That’s tied with the Chicago Cubs for the second Wild Card slot. It’s also one game behind the San Diego Padres for the first spot. Trying to keep pace are the Arizona Diamondbacks, who are three games behind with time running out.
The Phillies entered play on Wednesday with a magic number of 2. They lost and the Diamondbacks won, though, so they didn’t make any progress there. Still, they can keep chipping away at that number.
The Phillies can also clinch with a win and a Padres loss. That’s because, if they end up in a three-way tie with the Diamondbacks and the Padres, they’d win the tiebreaker.
With a win on Thursday, the Phillies will push that number down to just 1 to clinch a postseason bid. A loss by the Diamondbacks would also chip into that number, as they’re battling for that final spot.
The Phillies Rotation Going into the Postseason
The Phillies need to clinch a spot in the postseason. That much is obvious, but they also need their rotation ready to roll for the postseason itself.
The top two of that rotation, in an ideal scenario, would be Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sanchez. It’s a formidable top of the rotation by all accounts, but if the Phillies let clinching extend for too long, they risk needing to burn one or the other before the Wild Card round.
After that, the Phillies have more questions in the rotation. No. 3 starter Jesus Luzardo has been great this season but is currently injured, and even if he’s able to return for the postseason, it’s impossible to say how long he can go or how effective he might be.
Then, the back of the Phillies rotation is being held down by Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter. Both have been inconsistent this season, but Nola does have good postseason experience.
In any case, the Phillies would like to clinch as quickly as possible to keep their rotation rested. Otherwise, there are questions that they’ll need to answer.
Phillies Starting Rotation, Plan for Cristopher Sanchez Revealed Before Playoffs