September 26, 2023
Kate Frese/for PhillyVoice
PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 13: A photo from the Philadelphia Phillies game against the Atlanta Braves on September 13, 2023 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. (Photo by Kate Frese/PhillyVoice)
The Phillies are dancing (on their own) for the second straight fall, after beating the Pirates, 3-2 on a walk-off hit from Johan Rojas in the 10th, Tuesday night to clinch a berth into the 2023 MLB postseason.
Like last season — prior to their historic run to the World Series — they'll be a Wild Card entry, trailing the Braves by a country mile in the NL East. But unlike last season, they'll almost assuredly be the top of three Wild Card teams in the NL, holding the No. 4 seed in the playoff bracket.
Get ready for a red October by reading up on some of the basics ahead of next week's action:
What's the format?
The Phillies, by virtue of that No. 4 seed, will be the home team for the first series of the postseason, a best-of-three set to be played at Citizens Bank Park. All three games will be home games with the Phils obviously needing to win two to advance. If they do, they'll play either the Dodgers or the Braves in the NLDS depending on seeding — each of those teams will get a bye into Round 2.
When do they play?
Philadelphia will host the No. 5 seed in the NL for three straight nights, starting on Tuesday, October 3. The game start times haven't been announced yet but you can probably bet that all or at least one of the games will be in prime time on the East Coast, as the Phils are likely to be the biggest ratings draw in the Wild Card Series. All of the games in this stage of the postseason will appear on ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC.
Who will they play?
As you read this, the bottom of the bracket is yet to be finalized. The Diamondbacks and Cubs are the two most likely future opponents, and the two will likely jockey for positioning for the rest of the week along with the Marlins, who entered Tuesday one game behind Arizona and Chicago. Those are the three teams Philly could host. Our Adam Aaronson broke down the potential matchups already, but the Phillies have had success against each of the three teams they might face and should be pretty big favorites in South Philly next week:
| NL Team | Win-Loss | Run diff |
| Diamondbacks | 4-3 | 44-34 |
| Cubs | 5-1 | 31-21 |
| Marlins | 6-7 | 64-55 |
Who will pitch?
With the early clinch, the Phillies should be able to line up their rotation exactly how they like, and could elect to give extra rest to their top starters. Aaron Nola pitched the clincher and would be in line to pitch again on Sunday in a meaningless outing against the Mets in New York. Assuming he is the Game 2 starter, he is probably going to be sitting that one out.
As for Game 1, Zack Wheeler might keep his Thursday start in the finale with the Pirates to stay loose to pitch exactly five days later in Tuesday's playoff opener, but we'll have to see how manager Rob Thomson decides to handle that one.
If there is a Game 3, it seems mostly likely that Ranger Suarez would get the nod, and he's pitching Wednesday (and will probably still get that start). Other options include Taijuan Walker — who may be a Game 4 starter in a longer series — Cristopher Sanchez or Michael Lorenzen (who has since been moved to the bullpen).
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