Clash of Superstars — Series Preview: Dodgers at Phillies, April 4 – 6

The Philadelphia Phillies will welcome the reigning champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, into town this weekend for a tough three-game series. After completing a sweep on another NL West team, thanks to dominant starting pitching and offensive success — credit to Edmundo Sosa and Kyle Schwarber — the Phillies will take on the World Series favorites. The Dodgers, now 8-0 in 2025, won handily in last year’s Fall Classic and have continued that success into the new season.

After their World Series win, the champs got active in the offseason and bolstered their already near-perfect lineup and ace-heavy rotation. Entering the offseason as the ideal landing spot for Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki, the Dodgers locked him up with a $6.5 million signing bonus on top of a minor league contract. Sasaki will slot into LA’s already ace-heavy rotation as the third or fourth man. Along with Japan’s top free-agent pitcher, the Dodgers added another elite arm in Blake Snell. The former Cy Young winner signed for 5 years for $182 million. Snell was chosen to be the Opening Day starter for the Dodgers, followed by Yoshinobu Yamamoto and then Sasaki.

With their starting pitching additions, the Dodgers needed to fill their rare holes residing in the bullpen. Therefore, they inked the top relief arm on the market: Tanner Scott. Scott signed for four years and $72 million, a massive deal for a relief pitcher. Another top reliever, Kirby Yates, signed a one-year deal worth $13 million. On the other side of the ball, Gavin Lux was cut from the roster in lieu of Hyeseong Kim signing with the team. Michael Conforto also landed with the Dodgers and looks for a bounce-back year with the lineup protection that the Dodgers offer.

With the spectacular offseason they had, the Dodgers earned themselves an undefeated record through their first eight games. However, changes are imminent after one of their MVPs, yes, there are a few, Freddie Freeman, hit the injured list for spraining his surgically-repaired ankle in the shower on Sunday. Freeman played a large role in their 8-0 run but so has Mookie Betts, who was sidelined with a terrible illness a week ago, but has since posted a 1.114 OPS in five games played. Their other MVP, Shohei Ohtani, has been on a tear and lifted a walk-off home run Thursday night to complete the sweep over the Braves.

To say the least, the Dodgers are hot. Scorching hot. Almost unanimously regarded as the team to beat, the Phillies will need to key in on a few aspects to get the series win:

Finish the job

The Phils have recently figured out how to hit starting pitching — promising, yes — but have not figured out how to score baserunners. In Thursday’s win over the Rockies, the Phillies loaded the bases in the second with one out and scored zero. Even more disappointing was the game before when they loaded them up in the sixth with Harper, Bohm, and Schwarber, and all three struck out to end the inning with no runs. The Rockies series boasted plenty of scoring opportunities and yet very few were taken advantage of.

In order to lock down this Dodgers series, they need to take advantage of the runners they get in scoring position. They may have swept the Rockies after breaking games open late, but the defending champs’ rotation and bullpen won’t be as forgiving as the Rockies were.

If the bottom of the order sparks a rally, the Phils need their money-makers to capitalize on it.

All-Star Aaron, 2023 Luzardo, and Cy Young Sanchez

Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola, and Cristopher Sanchez will start all three Phillies games against the Dodgers in that order. Luzardo and Sanchez tossed exceptional games in their first two starts, which will need to drift over into this upcoming series. However, Nola had a different type of start. He gave up 5 earned runs against the Nationals, all through the long-ball, which has been Nola’s kryptonite the past few seasons. Nola needs to get his affairs in order, especially with the Dodgers, who lead the National League in homers, coming into the hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park.

More importantly, the Phillies have had off-days after their first game of each series which has allowed manager Rob Thomson to have more range with his bullpen usage. In the upcoming weekend series there are no off-days. Luzardo, Nola, and Sanchez will need to go deep into games to give Thomson more flexibility with his bullpen.

To hand the Dodgers their first loss and avoid becoming just another stepping stone for their loaded roster, they will need deep, efficient starts from their rotation, total control from their bullpen, and a hauntingly dominant offense with contributions 1-9. After all, they are facing three former MVPs, a few present and future Cy Young winners, and one of the most complete bullpens in the league.

Although the last few games have shown that the bottom of the order can get the ball rolling offensively, in a clash of superstars, the Phillies will need their own to prevail.

Game Times and Broadcasts

Friday, April 4, 6:45 p.m. ET, Apple TV+, 94.1 WIP, WTTM 1680

Saturday, April 5, 4:05 p.m. ET, FS1, NBC Sports Philadelphia+, 94.1 WIP, WTTM 1680

Sunday, April 6, 1:35 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Philadelphia, 94.1 WIP, WTTM 1680

Probable Pitching Matchups

Game 1: Jesús Luzardo (LHP, 1-0, 3.60 ERA) vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto (RHP, 1-0, 2.70 ERA)

Game 2: Aaron Nola (RHP, 0-1, 8.44 ERA) vs. Roki Sasaki (RHP, 0-0, 5.79 ERA)

Game 3: Cristopher Sánchez (LHP, 0-0, 1.69 ERA) vs Tyler Glasnow (RHP, 2024 Stats: 1-0, 0.00 ERA)

By the Numbers

• Records
• Phillies: 5-1
• Dodgers: 8-0

• Run Differential 
• Phillies: 16
• Dodgers: 22

• Runs Scored Per Game 
• Phillies: 5.50
• Dodgers: 5.63

• Runs Allowed Per Game 
• Phillies: 4.67
• Dodgers: 2.83

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