Win, and you’re in — Series Preview: Pirates at Phillies, September 26 – 28
Philadelphia Phillies’ Brandon Marsh, from left, Michael Lorenzen and Nick Castellanos celebrate after the Phillies won a baseball game against the New York Mets, Sunday in Philadelphia. —AP Photo/Matt Slocum
All the Phillies need is a win, and they have themselves a postseason spot.
The magic number for a postseason and top Wild Card spot is one, and they will look to clinch in their final regular season series at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Pirates are 74-82 and are in fourth place in National League Central, 14 games back of the Milwaukee Brewers who are a win away from the NL Central crown.
Here are some storylines for the series:
Finish it off
The magic number to the Phillies making the postseason for a second straight season is down to one.
The Phils are one win away from clinching the top Wild Card spot as well. Or, they could lose every game the rest of the way and still get the top Wild Card spot. But that would suck.
The Phillies can clinch a postseason berth Tuesday night with a win vs. the Pirates or a loss by the Miami Marlins in Queens against the New York Mets, or the Chicago Cubs lose to the Atlanta Braves in Atlanta, or the Diamondbacks to the White Sox in Chicago. They need to win Tuesday to clinch the four-seed in the NL.
I think just a win is a lot easier.
Last time they met
These two clubs last clashed in late July when the Phillies visited Pittsburgh where they lost the series.
The Phillies survived in the opener, but an on-brand Aaron Nola mid-inning meltdown cost them Game 2. In the finale, the Phillies blew a pair of two-run leads and fell in ten innings.
All the Phils need is a Game 1 win this time around for it to be a successful series.
Nola needs to show
Tuesday could possibly be Aaron Nola’s final start of the regular season.
He has a chance to pitch the team to a playoff-clinching win for the second season in a row.
More importantly, he has a chance to end the season with two strong efforts.
Nola’s performances have been unbelievably inconsistent in 2023, so even if he pitches well on Tuesday, it might not mean anything for next week in the Wild Card series. But the Phillies and the fans would all feel better if the projected playoff game two starter ended the season riding high heading into October.
Game Times and Broadcasts
- Tuesday, September 26, at 6:40 pm ET on NBC Sports Philadelphia, WTTM 1680 (Spanish), 94.1 WIP, and 1490AM WBCB
- Wednesday, September 28, at 6:40 pm ET on NBC Sports Philadelphia, WTTM 1680 (Spanish), 94.1 WIP, and 490AM WBCB
- Thursday, September 29, at 6:05 pm ET on NBC Sports Philadelphia, WTTM 1680 (Spanish), 94.1 WIP, and 1490AM WBCB
Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Aaron Nola (RHP, 12-9, 4.57 ERA) vs. Mitch Keller (RHP, 13-9, 4.25 ERA)
Game 2: Ranger Suárez (LHP, 4-6, 3.89 ERA) vs. TBD (per MLB.com)
Game 3: Zack Wheeler (RHP, 13-6, 3.64 ERA) vs. TBD (per MLB.com)
By the Numbers
- Record
- Phillies: 87-69
- Pirates: 74-82
- Run Differential
- Phillies: 80
- Pirates: -95
- Runs Scored Per Game
- Phillies: 4.92
- Pirates: 4.31
- Runs Allowed Per Game
- Phillies: 4.41
- Pirates: 4.92
Phillies lineup in Game 1 on Tuesday night:
LET’S GO PHILLIES!!!!!!