PHILADELPHIA — Midseason, midweek, mid-afternoon at Citizens Bank Park, and Rob Thomson enters the dugout hours before a game and peeks at the out-of-town scoreboard that has just blinked to life in right field.
The Braves, as it happened, are in the middle of a day game.
And?
The usual.
“Atlanta is winning again,” the Phillies’ manager would say with an exhale, with half a smile of acceptance. “Surprise.”
What could he do? The Braves were having a year, Thomson knew they were having a year and the Phillies would only have a finite number of chances to do anything about them having a year. Atlanta would go 104-58 and bury the NL East field, the Phillies would be next with 90 wins and there would be no need for a finish-line photo.
But that race is over, and Saturday evening at 6 another one will begin when the Phils roll into Georgia for Game 1 of the best-of-five NLDS.
This time, Thomson feels his scoreboard glances just might be less deflating.
“Well, the one thing the Braves did, is they played consistent baseball all year long,” he said. “From Day 1, they didn’t go into any large losing streak that I know of. And we struggled out of the gate. That is something that we’ve got to work on in spring training, but I think we’re playing very good baseball right now. And I think it’s going to be a really good series.”
It’s how it is supposed to work once the tournament is shaved to the Elite Eight. That the Braves are only a slight favorite to win the series underlines that reality. But so, too, does the way the Phillies took late command of the wild card race, then broomed the Miami Marlins in two. And it’s why they are convinced that finishing 14 games out of first carries a minimum of October relevance.
“Atlanta is a great ballclub,” Kyle Schwarber said. “They have a really good team. They won the division and have a really good team and had the best record in baseball. There is no secret to them and there is no secret to us. We are going to go out there, we’re going to battle, and we’ll see what happens.”
Less significant than the 2023 regular-season results, is that the third-place Phillies finished – yes – 14 games behind Atlanta last year, too. But they would sweep St. Louis in the NL Wild Card, then oust the Braves in four.
“I think we match up pretty well,” Thomson said. “They have a great club. Look, don’t sell them short at all. But I think we match up. I think our offense can go up against anybody’s. The two guys that just pitched (Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola) are really pitching well right now. They are on a roll and hopefully they can stay on a roll.”
The Phillies lost eight of 13 in the regular season to the Braves, who featured one of the most potent offenses in modern baseball history. Atlanta matched the Twins’ record of 307 home runs in a season (the Phillies hit 220), and its .501 slugging percentage was a record. Presumptive MVP Ronald Acuna hit .337 with 41 home runs and 136 RBIs. Matt Olson (139, with 51 homers), Ozzie Albies (109) and Marcell Ozuna (100) also had triple-figure RBIs.
“Atlanta is a good ballclub,” Thomson said. “Don’t think that I don’t think they are a good ballclub. They have a really good ballclub, so we have a tough test. It will be a good series.”
With Wheeler and Nola spent in the wild-card round, Ranger Suarez gets the Game 1 start, with Wheeler up for Game 2 Monday. Either salvage a split or put the Phillies in 2-0 command as they return home.
The Braves will be without Charlie Morton, who has a finger injury. Also, Max Fried has been dealing with a troublesome blister, though he is expected to start Game 2. In Game 1, it will be 20-5 Spencer Strider, who this season faced the Phillies four times and struck out 38. But he never got out of the third inning in his only other career postseason start, a 9-1 NLDS loss last season in Citizens Bank Park.
Braves manager Brian Snitker has been quoted as saying the Phillies “scare me as much as any team in the game, honestly.” Not long ago, those out-of-town scoreboards were scary to the Phillies. But by Saturday, they and the Braves will be in a dead heat with 0-0 records.
“It’s pretty cool,” Bryson Stott said. “They’re in our division and they are a good team. But so are we. It should be fun.”
Contact Jack McCaffery at jmccaffery@delcotimes.com
Source: Berkshire mont