Phillies – Diamondbacks
USA - MLB Playoffs
17 Oct 2023, 02:07 CET
It will be a battle of National League Wild Cards with a trip to the World Series on the line beginning Monday night at Citizens Bank Park.
While the fourth-seeded Phillies hope to reach the Fall Classic for the second straight year and hoist the Commissioner’s Trophy this time around, the sixth-seeded D-backs look to make the most of their first NL Championship Series since 2007.
Both clubs are riding momentum entering the best-of-seven matchup after eliminating a favored division rival. Philadelphia, which is 5-1 this postseason and 4-0 at home, knocked of top seed Atlanta in their NL Division Series in four games. Arizona is undefeated this postseason following sweeps of Milwaukee (NL Wild Card Series) and Los Angeles (NLDS).
Today will mark the first postseason showdown between these two clubs. Philadelphia took the season series, 4-3, in 2023 and outscored Arizona 44-34 in the process. The pitching matchups should be a doozy, with Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler and D-backs right-hander Zac Gallen facing each other in Game 1, followed by righties Aaron Nola and Merrill Kelly in Game 2 on Tuesday night.
Game 1 will be at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. MST on Monday at Citizens Bank Park
For the D-Backsis gonna start Zac Gallen.
Gallen has been Arizona's ace all year long, and by sweeping the Dodgers in three games, the D-backs are able to set up their rotation the way they want. Gallen made one start against the Brewers in the NL Wild Card Series and allowed two runs in the first inning, but nothing after that in going six innings. Against the Dodgers in Game 2 of the NL Division Series, he allowed two runs over 5 1/3 innings and got the win. Gallen is expecting quite the cheering section to be on hand, as he grew up near Citizens Bank Park in South Jersey.
The starter for the Phillies will be Zack Wheeler. Wheeler was set to start Game 5 of the NLDS on Saturday in Atlanta, but with the Phillies wrapping up the series in four games, Wheeler instead will start Game 1 of the NLCS on extra rest. Wheeler went 13-6 with a 3.61 ERA in 32 regular-season starts, but he takes his pitching to another level in the postseason.
Wheeler is 2-3 with a 2.59 ERA in eight career postseason starts. There are 121 pitchers in baseball history who have started eight or more postseason games. Wheeler ranks 19th in ERA. He is first in WHIP (0.72), and it is not even close. Hall of Famers Christy Mathewson (0.85) and Bob Gibson (0.89) are second and third, respectively.
The projected starting lineup for the D-Backs is gonna be:
1. Corbin Carrol, RF
2. Ketel Marte, 2B
3. Tommy Pham, DH
4. Christian Walker, 1B
5. Gabriel Moreno, C
6. Lourdes Gurriel jr., LF
7. Alek Thomas, CF
8. Evan Longoria, 3B
9. Geraldo Perdomo, SS
Manager Torey Lovullo liked to mix and match his lineups during the regular season, but he’s pretty much stayed with the same one throughout the playoffs, with a slight change against lefties. Moreno was removed from game 3 of the NLDS after being hit in the right hand by a foul tip. X-rays were negative, and he will be ready to go for Game 1 of the NLCS. Outfielder Jake McCarthy was removed from the roster just before Game 1 of the Wild Card Series after suffering a strained right oblique. He is not expected back.
It feels like the entire D-backs team is hot at the moment, but Carroll (1.389 OPS), Moreno (1.107) and Walker (1.023) all have had strong postseasons.
The projected starting lineup for the Phillies is gonna be:
1. Kyle Schwaber, DH
2. Trea Turner, SS
3. Bryce Harper, 1B
4. Alec Bohm, 3B
5. Bryson Stott, 2B
6. J.T. Realmuto, C
7. Nick Castellanos, RF
8. Brandon Marsh, LF
9. Johan Rojas, CF
Manager Rob Thomson will lean on left-handed hitters against Gallen, which means Brandon Marsh plays left field over Cristian Pache, and Bryce Harper hits third instead of cleanup. Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber are the only Phillies players to homer against Gallen.
First baseman Rhys Hoskins is on the 60-day injured list following left ACL surgery in March.
Hoskins was not on the team’s roster from the NLCS, BB though Thomson has said the World Series, if the Phillies were to make it, is a more realistic goal. Even then, Hoskins would be limited to pinch-hitter duties. Hoskins is in Clearwater, Fla., where he’s continuing to rehab and face live pitching as part of Philadelphia's stay-ready group.
Castellanos became the first player in postseason history to have back-to-back multihomer games, hitting two homers in Game 3 of the NLDS and two homers in Game 4. …. Turner is batting .500 with four doubles, two home runs and a 1.455 OPS this postseason. … Harper is batting .368 with three homers and a 1.380 OPS in the postseason.
At this moment this two teams seems to be the hottest around, let’s see how they’re gonna warm up the crowd tonight.