The Major League Baseball playoffs are set, and the return of Red October has officially arrived.
The Phillies may have fallen just short of the top overall seed, finishing one game behind the Milwaukee Brewers (97–65), but their 96–66 mark was still the second-best record in the league.
The team left little doubt in the NL East race, finishing 13 games clear of the New York Mets to claim the division crown.
A big reason for that dominance was the club’s late-season surge. Since the start of August, the Phillies posted an MLB-best 35–19 record, hitting their stride at exactly the right time as October baseball begins.
With the No. 2 seed in the NL, the Phillies will hold home-field advantage for the Division Series, which opens Saturday, October 4, at Citizens Bank Park. Their opponent has yet to be determined, but it will be either the No. 3 seed Los Angeles Dodgers or the No. 6 seed Cincinnati Reds. Those two clubs will square off in a best-of-three Wild Card Series beginning Tuesday night in Los Angeles. Baseball fans will remember the Dodgers are the defending champions, having captured last year’s World Series with a 4–1 victory over the New York Yankees.
After suffering early postseason exits in recent years, the Phillies enter October with added motivation to recapture their 2022 magic when they stormed through the NL bracket and reached the World Series, before ultimately falling to the Houston Astros in six games.
While the team is undoubtedly grieving the loss of ace Zack Wheeler, who was on track to be a potential Cy Young candidate before being sidelined in late August with venous thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS)—the rest of the rotation has stepped up in his absence. The Phillies will lean heavily on newfound ace Cristopher Sánchez, who delivered an exceptional season: a 13–5 record, 2.50 ERA (fifth-best in the league), 212 strikeouts (seventh), and a 1.06 WHIP (12th).
In a fitting conclusion to the regular season, Sánchez took the mound on Sunday and turned in a dominant performance, tossing 5.2 shutout innings with eight strikeouts, no walks, and just two hits allowed.
Sánchez is slated to take the ball in Game 1 on Saturday at Citizens Bank Park, where he will set the tone against either Los Angeles or Cincinnati.
In other Phillies news, shortstop Trea Turner claimed the 2025 NL batting title, finishing the season with a .304 average over 141 games. His 179 hits ranked second in the league, and he stood alone as the only qualified NL hitter to eclipse the .300 mark.
Turner is the first Phillie to win a batting title since Richie Ashburn in 1958. A six-time All-Star, Ashburn went on to earn induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995.
The Phillies enter the 2025 postseason riding a wave of momentum, and fans are eager to see a deep October run—a welcome change from last year’s disappointment, when the club, also a No. 2 seed, fell to the No. 6 seed New York Mets in the Division Series, 3–1.
This season carries a different feel. Despite the loss of Wheeler and other injuries and suspensions that tested the roster, Philadelphia appears poised for a breakthrough. With a veteran core anchored by Turner, Bryce Harper, and Kyle Schwarber, who hit 56 home runs in the regular season, the Phillies appear to have the star power and experience to make the National League theirs for the taking.
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