Phillies Clinch Playoff Spot

The Philadelphia Phillies took a 3-0 victory over the Houston Astro’s Oct. 3 to send them to the playoffs. The team is now standing two games ahead of Milwaukee in the NL Wild Card standings, a feat they haven’t pulled off since 2011.

The Drought is Over!

This was considered MLB’s longest drought for a team not making the playoffs at 4,010 days. Many fans can thank the top two longest-tenured players Aaron Nola and Zach Eflin for bringing the rain.

Nolan pitched 6 2/3 near-perfect innings while Eflin pitched a flawless ninth inning that lead to a shallow fly ball to a center fielder for the game-winning out. They both hold the team’s most extended residency by playing through 90-game-loss seasons and late-season downfalls.

Aaron Nola. pic.twitter.com/suA3ryqq3e

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) October 4, 2022

Nola was drafted in 2014 and has watched the team be torn down and rebuilt. During his time on the team, he has started in 203 games and pitched 198 2/3 innings. This LSU alumni has averaged a 92.7 mph fastball and just raised his strikeout-to-walk ratio to 8.10 – the highest ever for a starting pitcher in team history. For this game specifically, Nola struck out nine, walked none and almost pitched a perfect game before giving up two singles in the seventh.

It is also notable to add Kyle Schwarber, the team and league’s home run leader, hit his 46th and 47th home runs of the season, which secured the playoff berth. Twelve of these homers were batted in June where he lead the team with 27 RBI.

What’s in Store for the Phillies?

MLB has a new format for this wild card postseason. Teams will be playing three consecutive games from Oct. 7-9 at the higher seed’s field. The first team to achieve two wins will advance.

The last time the Phillies played in the postseason, they beat the Astros 1-0 on Sept. 14, 2011 with the help of a shutout from Hall of Famer Roy Halladay. They will now either face the the NL Central champion, the Cardinals in St. Louis, or their division rival, the Mets in New York.

Game 1 of the wild card series is set for Friday.