Phillies Reach October Baseball
Phillies Clinch Fifth Straight Postseason Berth After Surviving Late-Season Scare
Anonymous
The Phillies clinched a National League wild-card berth in their final regular-season game, ending a tense stretch in which four straight losses nearly erased their playoff cushion and Arizona closed in. Zack Wheeler delivered six innings of one-run ball, while the offense broke out for a 7-3 win after Philadelphia had struggled to score and its pitching and bullpen faltered. The late-season scare followed a dramatic year that included a managerial change, a strong August, and a September slide that ended the team’s hopes of winning the division. Though the playoff berth does not erase the team’s recent shortcomings or guarantee a deep postseason run, it gives the Phillies—and their fans—a reason to celebrate reaching October.
Key Points
1
The Phillies began the season with Rob Thomson as manager but fired him after 28 games, turning to bench coach Don Mattingly. A trade-deadline acquisition of second baseman Luis Arraez later helped spark the offense.
2
In the 11 games from Sept. 15 to 26, Philadelphia scored only 31 runs, while catcher J.T. Realmuto went 0-for-34.
3
The Diamondbacks matched Philadelphia’s four-game losing streak with four wins, cutting the Phillies’ five-game cushion to one while holding the tiebreaker.
4
One case for celebrating the berth is the grind of a 162-game season played nearly every day: the article argues that reaching the postseason means the regular-season goal was met, even though winning the World Series remains the ultimate aim.
Sentiment
Mostly NegativeNEGATIVENEUTRALPOSITIVE
Publishers
17
Articles
21
Reach
38
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