Phillies shoo-in for first wild card spot after impressive season, asserts MLB podcaster: "They're better than every team that's chasing them"
Similar to last year, the Philadelphia Phillies have made a late season run that sees them as one of the contenders for the pennant.
In 2022, Philadelphia edged out the Milwaukee Brewers by just one game. They finished the season 4-6 to scrape through to the playoffs after a shaky season. They ended up working their way all to way to the World Series.
This year, the Phils once again find themselves battling for a wild card position, but are in a commanding position. Rob Thomson's team is currently 84-69 with nine games remaining. They hold the advantage in the NL wild card race with some breathing room over the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs and Miami Marlins. The Phillies lead Arizona by two games and the Cubs by five games.
MLB analyst Chris Klemmer seems to think the Phillies are a lock for their second straight postseason appearance:
"They're better than every team that's chasing them. I am very confident."
Klemmer was speaking on a recent episode of Barstool Baseball. He said that the Phillies will not only hold on to their wild card spot, but remain in first place in the wild card rankings.
Barstool Baseball - (30:30)
Along with the Diamondbacks, Cubs and Marlins, the Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants also pose an outside threat. All six teams will be battling it out for the final three playoff places.
The Phils have six games remaining versus the New York Mets and three games versus the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Philadelphia Phillies won the National League pennant in 2022
The Braves remain the favorites in the National League but it is still too early to count out this Philadelphia side.
"Phillies win and inch closer to clinching a playoff spot. Their magic number is now 5. Phils have won 5 of 7 Nick Castellanos with 4 RBIs tonight" - John Clark
The Phils retained the core of their team from last season and are capable of surprising a few teams this season. Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and Nick Castellanos are all in excellent form entering the final stretch of the season.
After finishing with an underwhelming 87-75 record last year, Philadelphia reached its first World Series since 2009. It will be looking to its veteran linup to do one better this year, and win its first championship in 15 years.