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It is time for our predictions for the Wild Card Series. Yes, we will have Game Threads. One thread a day, unless they run too long. The games are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (if needed).

Pick your winner in each of the three series and the number of games. And guess the total number of runs scored in all the games to be used as a tie-breaker.

Throw in any other predictions you would like to make.

The Wild Card Series start tomorrow. We have:

White Sox @ Houston. All their games are 5:00 Eastern starts. Both teams list TBD as starters. Former Jays Anthony Kay Seranthony Dominguez and Randal Grichuk play for the White Sox. Daulton Varsho is on the IL.

Red Sox @ Yankees. Their games are all 8:00 Eastern starts. Schlittler starts for the Yankees. TBD listed for the Red Sox. Can I pick both to lose? IKF plays for the Red Sox.

Phillies @ Braves. Their games are 2:00 Eastern starts. Chris Sale starts for the Braves. TBD for Padres. Tim Mayza plays for the Phillies. Lane Thomas is on the IL for the Braves.

Cubs @ Padres: Their games are 10:00 Eastern starts. Michael King starts for the Padres. TBD is listed for the Cubs. Matthew Boyd and Kevin Gausman play for the Cubs. Ty France, Robbie Ray and Will Wagner (on the IL) play for the Padres.

My picks?

Astros in 3.

Red Sox in 3, because someone has to to win and I’d be hit by lightening if I even picked the Yankees.

Braves in 2.

Cubs in 2, because I want to see Kevin Gausman in the World Series.

And lets go with 64 total runs.

Your turn.

Phillies turn to Jesús Luzardo in Game 1 despite not knowing ‘what to expect' originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

ATLANTA — Three weeks ago, Jesús Luzardo needed 109 pitches to shut out the Atlanta Braves. On Tuesday, the Phillies won’t know how many they’ll be able to ask of him.

In a best-of-three National League Wild Card Series against Chris Sale and the Braves, Philadelphia has an opportunity to steal Game 1 with Cristopher Sánchez lined up for Game 2 and Aaron Nola working toward a potential Game 3.

But after needing every last game of the regular season to clinch its fifth consecutive postseason berth, the Phillies have had to get creative with their pitching staff.

They arrived at Truist Park for Monday’s workout without an announced Game 1 starter. No pitcher was scheduled to speak afterward, an unusual arrangement on the eve of a postseason series.

Then interim manager Don Mattingly sat down at the podium and delivered the answer everyone had been waiting for.

“Zeus,” he said.

“I should say open,” he quickly clarified.

Luzardo will take the ball for his first start since Sept. 7, when he threw the first complete game of his career against these same Braves. How long he stays on the mound is another question.

“I don’t think we really know what to expect,” Mattingly said. “Been down a while. Pitched an inning, albeit short, yesterday. We kind of wanted to get, hoped to get the game off on a good foot, a good note, and see where it goes.”

Sunday’s appearance gave the Phillies enough reason to believe Luzardo was ready for the assignment, even if it lasted considerably less time than anyone could have anticipated.

The left-hander had been sidelined by shoulder inflammation since his Labor Day shutout and hadn’t faced live hitters in nearly three weeks. The Phillies initially wanted him to throw a simulated game Saturday, but doing so would have made him unavailable for Sunday’s must-win regular-season finale.

Instead, they kept him available out of the bullpen. When Mattingly called on him against Tampa Bay, Luzardo needed just four pitches to retire three hitters.

And according to J.T. Realmuto, those four pitches were quite a contrast to what he’d seen moments earlier.

The catcher was standing in the batting cage preparing for his next at-bat, watching Luzardo warm up on a monitor.

“He didn’t throw a single strike,” Realmuto said Monday. “We were actually talking in the cage as hitters, like, how are we going to get through this? ‘Sus hasn’t thrown a strike yet and he’s warming up.”

Luzardo was still rusty during his warmup pitches on the mound. Then the inning began, and he retired the side so quickly that Realmuto never got a chance to call one of his most effective pitches.

“I wanted to call an 0-0 sweeper just to get one in there and see how it looked,” Realmuto said.

Instead, he started the third hitter with a sinker, expecting to work the sweeper into the at-bat. One pitch later, the inning was over.

“I guess that’s how the game works,” Realmuto said. “His stuff looked good.”

For Realmuto, there had been some initial uncertainty about Luzardo’s recovery. But after the first few days, as the left-hander began reporting steady improvement in the clubhouse, the catcher grew increasingly confident that he’d be ready for the postseason.

The bigger question Sunday was how Luzardo would handle a role he had rarely, if ever, been asked to fill.

“It was more for me less about him coming off the IL,” Realmuto said. “He had never been out of the bullpen before that I know of and hadn’t seen him work in that capacity, and that can be a lot different for starting pitchers. It was definitely encouraging to see how well he threw coming into that spot.”

The Phillies received another encouraging update Monday. Luzardo reported no issues after his appearance, clearing the way for Mattingly to give him the ball against Atlanta.

“We wouldn’t be doing this if he didn’t come out feeling normal,” Mattingly said. “He felt good.”

It’s hardly the way the Phillies envisioned using a pitcher who finished the regular season 14-5 with a 2.85 ERA and 221 strikeouts across 29 starts.

Luzardo’s last full outing was among his finest. He struck out 12 Braves, walked nobody and allowed just two hits in a 1-0 victory at Truist Park. In four starts against Atlanta since joining Philadelphia, he owns a 1.01 ERA, with opponents batting .185.

Under different circumstances, he would have been a candidate to start Game 1 without any uncertainty about his workload. But the Phillies’ difficult final week left them with few conventional options.

Nola started Saturday on two days’ rest, and Zack Wheeler had to pitch six innings Sunday to secure their postseason berth. Mattingly acknowledged that neither development was particularly conducive to lining up a postseason rotation.

“The bullpen games haven’t went great for us this year, but that’s where we’re at,” he said. “Obviously what we had to get in and what we had to do with Noles the other day, all that kind of led to what we’re doing tomorrow.”

Rookie Andrew Painter could play a significant role behind Luzardo.

The right-hander is expected to be available out of the bullpen Tuesday, although the Phillies haven’t committed to a specific plan for the innings after their opener. Mattingly wants to see Atlanta’s lineup before deciding how to arrange his pitchers.

Painter spent the final days of the regular season available in relief as the Phillies tried to clinch, but the club never found an opportunity to use him in that role. He has made two bulk appearances out of the bullpen this season, so entering behind another pitcher wouldn’t be entirely unfamiliar.

His improved command during his second stint in the majors gives the Phillies more confidence in asking him to cover multiple innings, although pitching in his first postseason game presents another challenge.

And with Luzardo’s workload uncertain, Painter could be needed much earlier than a traditional bulk reliever.

“We haven’t sat down and really tried to script it yet,” Mattingly said. “We don’t know what their lineup looks like or anything else, so we’ll see tomorrow.”

The Phillies at least have some clarity beyond the opener. Sánchez is scheduled to start Game 2 on regular rest, while Nola is working toward a potential Game 3. Mattingly also left open the possibility of using Wheeler in a deciding game, depending on how he recovers from Sunday’s outing.

But getting through Tuesday won’t be straightforward, particularly against a Braves lineup that has seen plenty of Philadelphia’s pitching staff.

Realmuto acknowledged that familiarity creates an additional challenge for a catcher trying to guide his pitchers through a postseason game.

“There’s almost, feels like there’s a little more of the cat-and-mouse game of we can’t do the same things we’ve done all season,” he said. “Even if they’ve worked, there’s times you’ve got to go away from things.”

That familiarity works both ways, though. Luzardo’s success against Atlanta is well documented, and the Phillies have seen Sale four times this season. They know what they’re facing, even if they’re still figuring out exactly how they’ll approach it.

Luzardo’s availability wasn’t the only roster question Philadelphia resolved Monday.

Mattingly confirmed that Luis Arraez will not be on the Wild Card roster. The infielder has continued to make progress from the left ankle sprain he suffered Thursday, but he attempted to take swings Monday and was unable to do so.

Otto Kemp will take his place, and the Phillies will carry three catchers in Realmuto, Garrett Stubbs and Rafael Marchán. Mattingly pointed to Stubbs’ versatility as one benefit of that arrangement, noting that he can pinch-run and play several positions if needed.

Jonathan Bowlan will also be on the roster after recovering from a groin injury. The Phillies considered using him during Sunday’s clincher but held off because of the wet mound at Citizens Bank Park, which Mattingly feared could create unnecessary risk for a pitcher returning from that particular injury.

Bowlan’s return gives Philadelphia another option in the middle and late innings. How those options fit together will depend largely on what Luzardo can provide at the beginning of the game.

Mattingly isn’t promising a traditional start, and Sunday offered only a brief look at a pitcher who hasn’t worked a full game in three weeks. But Luzardo got through his appearance, felt good the following day and is ready to take the mound against the last team he faced before his injury.

“This is how we got here,” Mattingly said. “We’re walking into it like this. We’re going to show up and play, and we’ll see where it goes.”

Yes, the White Sox did end up snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory by falling from the No. 2 seed into the No. 6 and final Wild Card spot at the end of the season, and their punishment is extreme: Having to spend additional time in Texas.

Worse, due to the compressed nature of the playoffs and the desire to play as few games in snow flurries as possible, there is not even time for a travel day in the Wild Card Round so that both teams get at least one home game (in the minors, three-game postseason series start with the lower seed getting Game 1 at home, then the better seed hosting Game 2 and a possible Game 3). Thus, the entire series is played in Houston, essentially one more “normal” series tacked on to the regular season in order to winnow the playoff teams down to a proper four.

As expected, the White Sox will not be in prime time, a consequence of both the middle-ground Central Time Zone and “disinterest” in the White Sox and Astros nationally. Yes, Chicago is the third and Houston the sixth media market in the country, but, you know, those other Sawx have brain control over MLB and, I don’t know, “the Cubs.”

But the White Sox have a consistent spot, with 4 p.m. Central Games 1 and 2 in Houston, then a possible time shift for a potential Game 3 depending on which of the other three series have already wrapped up.

And sadly, for those of you not enslaved by the Universal Corporation/NBC with your streaming, that is where the entire Wild Card series lands this year, with no local broadcasting beyond Steve Stone sneaking into the Peacock booth to provide color commentary.

So, if the White Sox and Astros go three games along with every other Wild Card series, here is how things will shake out:

Game 1 (Tuesday, September 29) White Sox at Astros, 4 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)
Game 2 (Wednesday, September 30) White Sox at Astros, 4 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)
Game 3 (if needed, and all four series are still active) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 4 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)

Game 3 (if needed, and Atlanta-Philadelphia is finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 1 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)
Game 3 (if needed, and Padres-Cubs is finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 4 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)
Game 3 (if needed, and Yankees-Red Sox is finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 4 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)

Game 3 (if needed, and Atlanta-Philadelphia and Padres-Cubs are finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 1 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)
Game 3 (if needed, and Atlanta-Philadelphia and Red Sox-Yankees are finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 1 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)
Game 3 (if needed, and Red Sox-Yankees and Padres-Cubs are finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 1 p.m. CT (Peacock and NBCSN)

Game 3 (if needed, and all other three series are finished) (Thursday, October 1) White Sox at Astros, 7 p.m. CT (NBC and Peacock)

For you baseball hounds who want to watch every game, or have a secret other favorite baseball team you want to keep hidden from your sisters and brothers at South Side Sox, here’s the full slate of Wild Card broadcast games, per MLB:

The MLB postseason is here.

There are 12 teams headed to the playoffs including the Houston Astros and the Philadelphia Phillies, who needed wins in Game 162 to punch their respective tickets to the dance. But now, records reset to 0-0, and all 12 teams have an equal chance to win the World Series.

At least in theory.

But some teams are in a better position than others as the playoffs beckon. Here are the 12 teams in the MLB Playoffs, ranked by their chances of winning the World Series.

12. Houston Astros (81-81)

The Houston Astros became the first team in MLB history to win the division without a winning record.

This is a team that can mash, as the Astros led the majors with 226 home runs, 42 off the bat of MVP candidate Yordan Alvarez. Four other members of the lineup topped 20 home runs as well: Christian Walker, Jeremy Peña, Isaac Paredes, and Cam Smith.

But the problem is pitching, as the Astros were 24th in MLB in ERA and 21st in WHIP. Closer Josh Hader was solid in the second half, racking up 16 saves and posting a WHIP of 0.682, and Bryan Abreu has been dependable in front of him, but the bullpen has been inconsistent beyond those two.

So if the rotation cannot pitch deep into games, that will be a problem.

11. Chicago White Sox (84-78)

After losing more than 100 games in each of the past three seasons, the Chicago White Sox were one of baseball’s best stories this year, leading the AL Central for much of the season before sliding into the playoffs with a Wild Card spot.

Chicago is powered by a lineup that features three players with more than 30 home runs — Munetaka Murakami, Colson Montgomery, and Miguel Vargas — and as a team the White Sox posted an OBP 0f .320, second only to the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League.

However, the problem in the playoffs might be starting pitching. As a staff the White Sox starting pitchers posted an ERA of 4.60 this season (26th in the majors) and a WHIP of 1.34 (25th in the majors). That sets up a tough matchup, starting with the Wild Card Series against Houston.

But, they do have the Pope on their side.

10. Philadelphia Phillies (88-74)

The Philadelphia Phillies cut their magic number for a playoff spot to one with a win over the Milwaukee Brewers last Tuesday.

They lost their next four games by a combined score of 23-3, needing a win on the final day of the season to book a postseason berth.

Philadelphia did that on Sunday, clinching the final Wild Card spot in the NL with a 7-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, and this star-laden team now gets a series with the Atlanta Braves to prove everyone wrong. Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, and Trae Turner bring the star power, and Jhoan Duran remains one of the best closers in baseball. Philadelphia also has Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sánchez leading the rotation; however, manager Don Mattingly was forced to use Sánchez in the season finale, complicating his availability this week. Then there is Aaron Nola, who is coming off a spot start on short rest on Saturday and needs to play a big role despite some struggles this season.

Can a weary rotation, and a bullpen that has endured its own share of struggles in front of Duran, get the job done? That is the big question.

9. Cleveland Guardians (85-77)

While the Chicago White Sox were one of the biggest surprises of the MLB season, in the end the Cleveland Guardians clinched the AL Central, and a first-round playoff bye.

Their reward? After the bye Cleveland will have home-field advantage against the winner of the Houston-Chicago series, and they will avoid any of the AL East teams until a potential ALCS matchup.

The Guardians are led by their pitching, as Cleveland boasts both a strong rotation and a stellar bullpen. Gavin Williams and Parker Messick pace a starting staff that produced the ninth-best ERA among starters and the bullpen, led by closer Cade Smith and the trio of setup arms Hunter Gaddis, Eric Sabrowski, and Tim Herrin was even better, with the sixth-best ERA among bullpens in the majors.

If Cleveland gets enough production from the offense, that pitching staff could power them to the ALCS, where anything can happen.

8. Boston Red Sox (87-75)

After a brutal start cost manager Alex Cora his job, the Boston Red Sox used a 32-5 stretch to push into playoff contention.

But Boston cooled off after that torrid summer, and there are some questions facing this team as the playoffs loom. One is the health of the lineup. Ceddanne Rafaela is back after missing 16 games with a quad injury, but will Willson Contreras be fully healthy after getting hit by a pitch on his right hand in the final week of the season? A second question? Can the lineup bounce back after a difficult September. As a team, Boston posted an OPS of .651 in the month of September.

Which was dead last in the majors.

Pitching is not a question. The trio of Payton Tolle, Sonny Gray, and Ranger Suárez is one of the best left standing, and Aroldis Chapman has been dynamic at the back of the bullpen yet again. Boston could even get Garrett Crochet back from injury in a relief role, and Tanner Houck — who started Game 162 more than 500 days after his last MLB appearance, after working back from Tommy John surgery — could be in the mix out of the bullpen as well.

Which version of the Red Sox shows up, however, is the ultimate question.

7. Chicago Cubs (89-73)

The Chicago Cubs have one of the best offenses in baseball, led by MVP candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong, the first center fielder in MLB history to produce a 40/40 season. This is a lineup that led the majors with a team OPS of .767, and a team slugging percentage of .428. Beyond Crow-Armstrong, Alex Bregman, Ian Happ, Michael Busch, and Seiya Suzuki all put 20 home runs on the board this season.

The Cubs also have one of the best defenses in baseball, again with Crow-Armstrong leading the way. The outfielder posted a Fielding Run Value (FRV) of +26 this season, tops in the majors, and the Cubs led all teams with a FRV of +72 this year, ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals who posted a +45.

The problem? Pitching. The Cubs starters posted a team ERA of 4.27 this year — worst among NL playoff teams — and only two teams gave up more home runs than the Cubs this year. And a staff that has been hampered by injuries faces another question on that front as the playoffs loom, as Kevin Gausman was injured on a tag play last week and suffered an injury to his non-throwing shoulder. Craig Counsell would love to have him for the series against the San Diego Padres.

The Cubs have the offense and the defense to win games, but do they have the pitching to win a series or two?

6. San Diego Padres (91-71)

If momentum could be measured, the San Diego Padres might be off the charts.

The Padres went 17-11 in August, and then 18-6 in September, to lock down a Wild Card spot. This was quite the turnaround for a team that was flirting with being sellers at the trade deadline. Leading the way was outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr., who did not homer over the first 55 games of the season but finished with 25 home runs and 38 steals, thanks to a torrid closing stretch. Jackson Merrill overcame a slow start of his own to finish with 26 home runs and 27 steals, giving the Padres their first 25/25 duo.

As a lineup, the Padres were second in both OPS and slugging percentage after the All-Star break, behind only the Cubs.

San Diego also has one of the best bullpens in baseball, with closer Mason Miller in form behind setup men Adrian Morejon and Bradgley Rodriguez.

They’ll host the Cubs in the Wild Card Series, and while Chicago won the season series 5-1, that was before San Diego’s late-season turnaround.

5. New York Yankees (93-68)

When the New York Yankees lost Aaron Judge for an extended period of the regular season, the lineup stepped up in his absence. While Judge played just 66 games and hit 18 home runs, the Yankees managed to belt 223 home runs, finishing second in the majors.

But with his status in question for the Wild Card Series against Boston, the rest of that lineup will need to step up yet again. And the matchup against the Red Sox will be a tough one, as Boston will likely throw Payton Tolle, Sonny Gray, and Ranger Suárez against them — a strong start — and the Red Sox have one of the best bullpens in the game.

And that matchup will be even tougher without Judge’s bat in the lineup.

We have a deeper preview of this series here.

4. Atlanta Braves (94-67)

While the Atlanta Braves would have loved a first-round bye, with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers out of striking distance Atlanta was able to set their rotation for the Wild Card Series over the final week of the season. Chris Sale made his final start of the regular season last Wednesday on extra rest, and will be on extra rest when he gets the ball for Game 1. The same goes for Tyler Mahle, who will have extra rest ahead of an anticipated Game 2 start.

Plus the Braves get the Philadelphia Phillies in the Wild Card Series, who gave their fans something to worry about over the final few days of the season as they did not clinch a spot until Game 162.

3. Tampa Bay Rays (98-64)

Few people gave the Tampa Bay Rays a chance when the season began.

Leading with me, who put the Rays in the “True Longshots” category when the year began, along with the Diamondbacks, the Athletics, and the Twins.

But here are the Rays, the winners of the AL East and the team to beat in the American League. MCP candidate Junior Caminero has put up massive numbers for Tampa Bay — he slashed .276/.360/.524 this year along with 42 home runs — and is at the heart of a lineup that punishes pitchers from top-to-bottom. As a team the Rays hit .258 this season, the best number in the AL and tied with the Brewers for the top number in the majors, and the Rays also posted a team OPS of .728, behind only the Houston Astros in the American League.

Add in a staff that posted an MLB-best team WHIP of 1.14, tied with the Dodgers, and you have the recipe for a deep playoff run.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers (100-62)

The Los Angeles Dodgers got off to their annual hot start, endured a mid-season slump that raised more questions than answers about their chances at a three-peat, but enter the playoffs having found some of those answers.

Kyle Tucker’s season-long slump seems to be ending just in time for a post-season run, as he slashed .266/362/.557 in the month of September, his best stretch of the season by far. Shohei Ohtani and Will Smith are both back in the lineup, Edwin Diaz seems to have found his stuff — he was flawless in September, allowing just one hit in four appearances and striking out eight — and Mookie Betts is back to being Mookie Betts, as he slashed .345/.447/.690 in September, also putting up his best numbers of the season.

When you’ve won a pair of titles, you know when to turn it on.

The Dodgers seem to have done just that over the last month.

1. Milwaukee Brewers (103-59)

The Milwaukee Brewers top these rankings, as they topped 100 wins for the first time in franchise history.

But for this team, the real test comes in October. The Brewers have now won the NL Central for four consecutive years, and in five of the last six campaigns. What do they have to show for that? Two playoff wins, including a sweep at the hands of the Dodgers in the NLCS a year ago.

Jacob Misiorowski gives them a bonafide ace, as the big right-hander led the majors in ERA (1.86), ERA+ (225), WHIP (0.803), and K/9 (13.1) this season, and Logan Henderson has developed into a solid No. 2 for Milwaukee. If Kyle Harrison somehow recovers his first-half form (he was 8-2 with a 3.01 ERA before the All-Star Break, but went 3-3 with a 7.31 ERA in the second half of the season) this team could finally break through to the promised land.

Welcome back to this season’s final edition of Monday Stat Party, a weekly series showcasing some of the most curious and nostalgia-inducing statistical developments from the past week of Mets baseball. What unites each entry is the sense of intrigue which they aim to spark, and the unbridled love of the game’s anomalies from which they arise. Without further ado, let the stat party begin.

TUESDAY

With his 25th stolen base of the season, A.J. Ewing broke Mookie Wilson’s 1981 record for the most stolen bases by a rookie in franchise history.

Kodai Senga became one of just 11 Japanese-born players to reach eight career saves, joining: Kazuhiro Sasaki (129), Koji Uehara (95), Takashi Saito (84), Akinori Otsuka (39), Shigetoshi Hasegawa (33), Shingo Takatsu (27), Hideki Irabu (16), Hisanori Takahashi (10), Masanori Murakami (9), and Yoshihisa Hirano (8).

Francisco Alvarez and Carson Benge each hit two doubles, marking the first time multiple Mets hit multiple doubles in a game since Ronny Mauricio and Jeff McNeil did it on July 27, 2025, in San Francisco.

WEDNESDAY

Marcus Semien hit his 15th home run of the year, giving the Mets six or more players with 15+ homers for the fifth time in franchise history after 2000 (7), 2017 (8), 2019 (6), and 2025 (6). The only teams with more 15-homer players this season were the Cubs, Reds, and Dodgers (all tied at 7). Of the Mets’ players with 15+ homers last season and this season, only two (Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto) overlap.

Juan Soto reached base four times for the 103rd time in his career, moving past Ted Williams for the third-most such games by a player before turning 28 years old. Soto trails only Mickey Mantle (121) and Jimmie Foxx (112).

Soto became the fifth Met to get intentionally walked three times in a game, after Claudell Washington (August 26, 1980), Vince Coleman (August 10, 1992), Todd Hundley (June 28, 1997), and David Wright (May 19, 2007, and July 18, 2009).

Brett Baty’s 455-foot home run tied the longest blast of his big league career, a homer off Brad Lord on August 20, 2025, in Washington.

Francisco Alvarez’s seventh-inning single registered an exit velocity of 113.7 mph. It was Alvarez’s 15th career batted ball with an exit velocity of 112+ mph, the second-most by a Met player in the Statcast era (since 2015) behind Pete Alonso, who had a whopping 130.

Alvarez, Lindor, and Baty each recorded a batted ball with an exit velocity over 110 mph, marking the first time the Mets recorded three batted balls with an exit velocity of 110+ mph in the same game since September 10, 2025, in Philadelphia.

Nolan McLean completed his rookie year with a total of 179.2 innings pitched, the most by a Mets rookie since Jae Weong Seo (188.1 in 2003), and 194 strikeouts, the third-most by a Mets rookie behind Dwight Gooden (276 in 1984) and Kodai Senga (202 in 2023).

McLean recorded his 250th strikeout in his 39th career game, tying Jacob deGrom for the fifth-fewest games by a Met to reach that milestone behind Dwight Gooden (29 games), Matt Harvey (34 games), Noah Syndergaard (36 games), and Kodai Senga (38 games).

McLean recorded his 26th game with at least five strikeouts this season, the most by a Mets pitcher since deGrom (29) and Syndergaard (27) in 2019.

McLean became the first rookie with 20 quality starts since the Royals’ Yordano Ventura (22 in 2014). McLean’s 20 quality starts this season were tied with Sonny Gray and Cam Schlittler for fifth-most in the majors behind Cristopher Sánchez (22), Yoshinobu Yamamoto (22), Sandy Alcantara (21), and Michael Wacha (21). McLean also recorded his 21st start of six or more innings pitched this season, the second-most by a Met in a season since 2020, trailing only Chris Bassitt (23 in 2022).

THURSDAY

Zac Thornton’s 63 strikeouts through 15 career games ranks fourth among Mets left-handers, behind Steven Matz (87), Bill Pulsipher (74), and David Peterson (69).

Juan Soto became the second Mets player to get intentionally walked four times in a two-game span, after Travis d’Arnaud did it while batting in the No. 8 spot ahead of Jon Niese and Bartolo Colón on June 1-2, 2014, in Philadelphia.

The Mets scored two or fewer runs through nine innings for the 63rd time this season. That ties 2013 for the most such games the Mets have had in a season in the Wild-Card Era (since 1995).

Over the franchise’s first five trips to Arlington, the Mets are still yet to lose a series on the road against the Rangers. They won two of three in 2003, won two of three in 2011, split a two-game set in 2017, won two out of three in 2024, and won two out of three again in 2026.

FRIDAY

Carson Benge became the first Mets rookie with 20+ homers and 20+ stolen bases in a season.

Benge became just the eighth player in MLB history to join the 20/20 club in their debut season, joining: Jackson Chourio (2024), Anthony Volpe (2023), Bobby Witt Jr. (2022), Julio Rodríguez (2022), Marty Cordova (1995), Ellis Burks (1987), and Mitchell Page (1977). (source: Sarah Langs on X)

Benge recorded his 43rd multi-hit game of the season, breaking Pete Alonso’s 2019 record for the most multi-hit games by a rookie in franchise history.

With a pinch-hit single in the eighth inning, Brett Baty extended his career-high 18-game on-base streak. It was snapped with an 0-for-4 performance on Saturday.

Bo Bichette hit his fourth home run at Nationals Park this season, tied for the most by a Mets player in any season on the road against the Nats/Expos. His six extra-base hits trail only David Wright (7) in 2012.

Francisco Lindor didn’t notch his 300th home run on Friday night, but he did record three batted balls in a game at 107+ mph for the first time in the Statcast era (since 2015). Unfortunately for him, only one of the three resulted in a base hit.

The Mets allowed five wild pitches in a game and four wild pitches in an inning for the first time in franchise history.

SATURDAY

Jonah Tong set career highs with nine strikeouts and 19 whiffs in a game.

Mets pitchers recorded 14 or more strikeouts in a game for the 12th time this season, the fourth-most such games in a season in franchise history behind 2021 (19), 2019 (17), and 2022 (17).

With a start at shortstop, Brett Baty became the first Mets player to play six different positions in a season since Jeff McNeil in 2023.

Nate Lavender has recorded 19 scoreless appearances in his first 21 career outings, tied with Jaime Cerda, Erik Goeddel, and Daniel Zamora for the second-most by a Met behind Joe Smith (20).

In the Mets’ penultimate game of the season, their No. 8 and No. 9 hitters hit back-to-back homers (A.J. Ewing and Ronny Mauricio). The 2026 Mets had done that once before — in their first game of the season, when Carson Benge and Francisco Alvarez went deep at Citi Field against the Pirates.

The Mets clinched their sixth consecutive victory in the season series with Washington. Their record against the Nationals is 57-33 over that span.

SUNDAY

Francisco Lindor became the fifth player to hit their 300th career home runwhile having played at least 50% of their games at shortstop, joining Ernie Banks, Cal Ripken Jr., Alex Rodriguez, and Miguel Tejada. (source: Sarah Langs on X) He is also the 11th switch-hitter to reach the 300-homer mark. (source: Sarah Langs on X)

Lindor became one of 27 players with 300 home runs and 200 stolen bases, and the third active player to have reached the milestone along with Andrew McCutchen and Mike Trout. He is the fifth member of that club to have played for the Mets; the others were Willie Mays, Darryl Strawberry, Gary Sheffield, and Carlos Beltrán.

Lindor became the seventh player to hit their 300th home run as a Met, joining Dave Kingman, George Foster, Gary Carter, Mike Piazza, Mo Vaughn, and Curtis Granderson.

Lindor’s 300th homer registered a 110.8-mph exit velocity, marking the third-hardest-hit homer as a right-handed batter in his career. His only harder-hit homer from the right side as a Met came on another afternoon in Washington, when he took MacKenzie Gore deep on August 21, 2025.

Ronny Maurcio became the first Met to hit three consecutive homers out of the No. 9 spot, with two on Saturday and one on Sunday. (source: SNY broadcast)

Carson Benge recorded his 14th three-hit game of the season, extending his record for the most three-hit games by a rookie in franchise history.

Juan Soto holds a 1.101 OPS against the Nationals in 39 games played facing his former team. That’s the third-highest OPS for any player with at least 150 plate appearances against the Nationals/Expos, trailing only Jim Edmonds (1.198) and Todd Helton (1.114).

Miscellaneous Mets stat of the week:

Let’s talk about the rookies.

In Carson Benge, Nolan McLean, A.J. Ewing, and Zac Thornton, the Mets have four rookies with at least 1.5 bWAR*. That’s tied for the most rookies with 1.5+ bWAR* in a season in franchise history, matching the mark from 1983 (Darryl Strawberry, Carlos Diaz, Walt Terrell, and Doug Sisk).

In Benge, McLean, and Ewing, the Mets have three rookies with at least 3.0 bWAR*. Prior to this year, they had never had as many as two such rookies in a single season. In fact, the 2026 Mets are just the third team in the modern era (since 1900) to have three rookies with at least 3.0 bWAR*, joining:

2006 Marlins (4: Hanley Ramírez, Dan Uggla, Josh Johnson, and Aníbal Sánchez)

1989 Orioles (3: Randy Milligan, Bob Milacki, Gregg Olson)

*bWAR separated for position players and pitchers, not cumulative

Thank you for following along all year! Here’s to many more stat parties in 2027…

At the end of last season, Rockies broadcaster Jerry Schemmel was let go for the second time in five years. It was unclear who would join longtime radio voice Jack Corrigan in the booth, but the Rockies held auditions during spring training, and the job was eventually won by Zach Goodman – broadcaster for the Double-A Amarillo Sod Poodles and son of Rockies TV broadcaster Drew Goodman.

Goodman joined the booth on April 4th and never looked back. Through the ups and downs of the Rockies season, he reflected on his rookie season.

Getting into a routine

One of the first things Goodman had to do was find a routine, especially since a typical workday looks very different working in sports.

“I’ll usually get up around 8:40ish to 9:00, and then I’ll go to work out. And then if we’re on the road, I’ll try to look around the city a little bit,” he said.

“But then I’ll come back and start looking up some stuff for the game. I’ll usually do the pitching matchup really early in my book just to have that ready for when I go to the ballpark. And then if it’s an away game, you’ve got to get on the bus whenever the bus is scheduled. If it’s a home game, I just try to get there for home clubhouse availability, which usually starts four hours before first pitch. And then once I’m there, I’m getting my interview. Then, I’m talking to people throughout the clubhouse to see if [I] can get anything interesting to use on air.”

He also uses the opportunity to continue developing relationships with players and personnel before heading to the dugout for Warren Schaeffer’s press conference and batting practice.

“And then you go up to the booth and start really grinding on your book,” he continued. “I’m someone who [likes] having a big scorebook, and I like having all of the information I want to use, the majority of it, on one page. I’m not good at trying to find it throughout other pages while also calling the action. So I like having everything I want to use in my book. So that’s usually a somewhat tedious (process), putting it together for an hour or hour and a half of writing everything in – finding different old stories, statistics, all that good stuff. So that takes a while.

“You hit the ballpark, and then you jump into the pregame show, then the game, and then the postgame show and all of a sudden you’re going home.”

New Things

There have also been numerous differences between the minors and Majors that Goodman has adjusted to. The most noticeable, of course, was the travel.

“You’re not on a bus for 12 hours,” he said. “You’re on a nice plane, and you’re going to big cities, and you’re traveling every few days compared to once a week.”

His favorite trip of the year was to Las Vegas and Chicago in June.

“Wrigley Field’s been my favorite visiting ballpark so far,” Goodman said. “It’s just all about the game of baseball. I love that. Every aspect about that place is celebrating baseball, which is really cool. But then obviously you’re in Vegas, and we stayed on the Strip and that was fun for a couple of days. I think we were all ready to get out of there on the third day.”

But in terms of actual broadcasting, there are a lot more resources and a lot more things that he needs to do to prepare.

“In my role with the Rockies radio right now with KOA, I have to get a pregame interview every single day of a player or sometimes an opposing broadcaster or a coach,” he said.

“But finding somebody to talk to for five minutes every single day, working around their schedule and coming with questions that’ll hopefully be interesting, relevant and different from the previous questions – just doing that on a daily basis has been something new to me, and I’ve really enjoyed that process. But that’s definitely been something that’s a little bit different because that’s not something I had to do at the minor league-level at all.”

When he’s not looking for Rockies players to interview, he tries to mix things up by finding opposing players with Colorado connections.

“I [interviewed] Jackson Holliday recently, just to talk about Ethan Holliday and his dad and growing up at Coors Field,” Goodman said. “And then I did Kyle Leahy on the Cardinals, who went to Erie High School and Colorado Mesa (University). Riley Cornelio with the Washington Nationals went to Pine Creek High School. So whenever there’s a Colorado connection, I go for that.”

Other times, especially if the team is struggling and there’s nobody to talk to, sometimes he’ll seek out a broadcaster from the opposing team to, “kind of get the lay of the land on how their team’s doing and their observations on the Rockies from an outsider’s point of view, who’s studying them to talk about them for a three-game set, but hasn’t watched them every single day and just being impressed by guys.”

Another thing that Goodman has needed to get used to, though, is interacting with fans.

“I think something else that has been new to me is getting notifications and DMs and comments on social media, whether they’re negative or positive,” he said.

“It’s just kind of funny because I don’t view myself in that way. I view myself as just a normal person who was playing college baseball a couple of years ago. I do normal things, and it’s just kind of weird to me that there’s people I don’t know who have strong opinions about me and will voice them to me over social media at times. And whether they’re positive or negative, it’s just kind of bizarre to me and weird to me, and it’s an adjustment that people know who I am. That’s kind of a weird one.”

But he’s learning to balance it, especially with advice from other members of the Rockies broadcast crews and players.

“It’s been really cool because I’ve had a lot of people reach out. There’s been so much positivity connected to it, and people reaching out to me and getting to interact with different fans who share the same love for the Rockies that I do and seeing them, whether it’s at the ballpark or just emails that I’ve gotten that I’ve been able to respond to and have a conversation with – all of that has been really cool, and I’ve enjoyed that aspect a ton,” he said. 

“From the negative side of things, when people are critical about how I’m doing or the team or any of that, it’s funny,” he continued. “It simply does not bother me at all because if you’re taking the time to write to a 26-year-old who’s living his dream and you’re just trying to bring him down in any way. Why would I care about your opinion? I don’t know you. It doesn’t bother me. It’s the entertainment industry – you’re never going to make everybody happy, and I just go based off what my family and friends think of me, and what my coworkers think of me, and as long as all of that is positive, then I’m OK.”

Highlights

The Rockies finished 58-104 this season, but it was filled with plenty of highlights for the young broadcaster. While he said “the whole season” has been a highlight, especially since he was able to spend the year with his dad covering the team he grew up a “diehard fan of,” there was a moment recently that will be etched in his memory forever: Catching a foul ball at Yankee Stadium.

“It was right after I dropped the ball the previous road game, which was a week before in Atlanta, but I botched that one,” he said. “[It was] just an easy pop-up right to me. I dropped it. I got a whole heap of ribbing from everybody in the Rockies travel crew to attendants at Coors Field when I got home. So then to catch one, and I was doing play-by-play during it, was pretty cool.”

It came off the bat of Hunter Goodman facing Cam Schlittler.

“[Goodman] fouled it back. It was just right at me, and it was like a heat-seeking missile,” he recalled. “I couldn’t get out of the way, but it hit me right in the chest and fortunately, I caught it clean with my hands. And I don’t usually do this because it’s bad etiquette, but I thought it would be cool to get both Schlittler and Goodman to sign the ball. I couldn’t track Cam Schlittler down in their clubhouse, but Hunter signed it for me. So that’ll go up in my office or my room, but I’ll definitely have that ball forever.”

Goodman also had the chance to make some memorable calls, including the third home run of each of Goodman’s three-home run games. But, as luck would have it, he was also able to call his first walk-off in early September. 

“The way our broadcast is structured is that Jack is the lead, so he does the ninth and the 10th innings, so anytime there’s a walk-off, it’s usually going to be him calling it and getting to call the end of the game. If it’s the 11th, that’s my inning and I do play-by-play for it,” he explained. 

“And a couple weeks ago, the Rockies walked off the Orioles. It was a crazy back-and-forth game, and so many things went against the Rockies. Their luck was so poor, and eventually – after a long at-bat, 3-2, a lot of two-strike pitches left on left with Brett Sullivan fresh into the game – he lines a walk-off single into left field,” Goodman recalled. “And getting to call that was my first walk-off call at the major-league level. And that was one, even though I’ve been doing it all year, and at the start of the year, it hits you like, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re doing Major League Baseball. This is really cool.’

“I got a little emotional after that one because that was one that really hit home, like, ‘Wow, you’re here. You just got to call a walk-off in a Major League Baseball game. That’s really cool.’ So that was one that definitely stands out to me.”

Challenges & Surprises

As with any job, there have also been some challenges that Goodman has faced. Namely, the Rockies had another bad year and trying to balance representing the team with being honest with the fans.

“It’s difficult because in some ways, you’re protecting these guys because you know them and you’re representing the team,” he said. “We’re not some reporter looking for an angle, trying to discuss a guy and his faults. We’re looking to prop these guys up and talk about them and be an ally for them. 

“But at the same time, you have to be honest with the fans,” he continued.

“Fans understand the game, too, and they’ll know if you’re BS-ing them completely. So there’s that line to walk. But with the Rockies this season in particular, is the record in a great spot? No. But from the expectations of what happened last year to where the organization is right now, it is just so positive. So many things have gone well this year, from what Paul DePodesta has done to Josh Byrnes and Walker Monfort. So many great additions to the team. I think Warren Schaeffer has done an excellent job at the helm, keeping this team motivated and he really is the right fit for this group of guys.”

He also pointed to players like Jake McCarthy, Cole Carrigg, Troy Johnston, Kyle Karros and TJ Rumfield as positive points in another down season, as well as the 16-win improvement from last year. 

“If you improve 15-20 games, that is a massive improvement,” he said.

“And yes, does 100 losses look good? No. But for this organization, this whole season has been such a massive step in the right direction, and I think we’re going to continue to make better strides as the years go on. If you’re a Rockies fan, if you support this team, I’d be really excited about the direction of this organization and its ability to have sustained success.”

But as far as surprises go, Goodman mentioned the massive machine that makes a baseball game operate, even though he grew up seeing the behind-the-scenes stuff.

“I think the fans would be surprised at how much goes into a major league operation, like in terms of at the ballpark,” he said, “the amount of clubhouse managers, the amount of people looking through video, the amount of coaching staff looking through video, the amount of trainers, the health and nutrition standpoint, the social media, the marketing, the communications… I mean, it just goes on and on and on. 

“And there are so many people that are involved in making the organization work,” Goodman continued.

“It’s crazy the amount of people that have to do so many jobs to put a baseball team on the field – put a winning team on the field, keeping those guys healthy, as well as the people that go into putting together a broadcast on both the radio and the television side. I mean, there’s so many people involved in the operation, and I kind of knew it from growing up, but I think people would be really surprised at the manpower that goes into putting together a broadcast, a baseball team’s performance, all of that. There’s just so many people involved.”

What’s Next

Now that Goodman has wrapped up his rookie season, he is excited to “see how far [he] can take this thing.”

“I would love to do football and basketball and hockey and whatever medium is available,” he said. “I really do like the radio medium, but I’d also do television, as well.”

But he has really come to appreciate the unique nature of baseball radio.

“I love baseball radio, especially because it’s one of the last true sports that relies on that medium, and it gives you the opportunity to really describe everything that’s going on in a baseball game,” he said.

“And there’s so much always going on, and I like the pacing of it and the ability to really have the freedom to take it any direction you want. [That] has been really fun. And then also just being super descriptive and trying your best to paint a picture to somebody that can’t see what you’re seeing. That’s what I’m constantly thinking about when I’m in the radio booth – (I’m) thinking about what the listener is hearing and hoping that they can envision what I am seeing out on the field.”

He also noted how different that is from a television broadcast.

“And that’s a challenge that is very different from television because on television, you could take four pitches and not say anything,” he said. “You could take four pitches and be talking about the Oscars or the Emmys or anything random, but the viewer can still see what’s going on in the game. Whereas on the radio side, you’re every pitch. You’re trying to make sure that everybody knows exactly what’s going on. You’re their eyes and ears. You have to be the one to describe it to them. So I really enjoy that aspect of it, and I’ve learned a ton this year from both Jesse Thomas and Jack Corrigan.”

But as far as the offseason goes, Goodman plans to keep busy.

“I’m somebody that likes to work, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy the first few days off, and then I have a lot of weddings and stuff,” he said. “My little brother’s bachelor party is coming up in a few weeks, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy that stuff. But I’m also sure that pretty soon after, I’ll be like, ‘All right, I’m ready to have baseball back.’ 

“And I’ll also be looking forward to the players and the owners coming up with an agreement so that we have baseball next year, so that’s something obviously we’ll all be keeping an eye on,” he continued. “But you know, (it’s) definitely really important for the people working in the industry. But I’m looking forward to doing other sports, as well. I love baseball and I love talking about it every day, so I’m going to miss it when it’s done.”

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Well, it looks like we’re doing this again.

For the third time in five seasons, the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies will be facing off in the Postseason. You don’t need me to tell you how the past two series went but if you’re dwelling on that, I’d advise you not to. Both managers have changed, both teams have a new look when compared to those two series and Philadelphia’s home crowd and/or ballpark won’t play a factor in this series since every game will be taking place in Cobb County.

So while this is a familiar Postseason foe, I think we’re all looking forward to a different Postseason result this time around. Atlanta should also benefit from having been able to prepare for this series for a solid week. The Phillies could’ve had a similar amount of preparation time but they instead left it all the way until Game 162 in order to clinch their spot in the Postseason. Depending on how you feel, it’s either a blessing or a curse that the Phillies will be going out of the frying pan of the regular season and into the fire of the Postseason without much rest or preparation.

With that being said, I’d imagine that the Phillies certainly would’ve preferred being able to set up for the Postseason since now they’re having to strain a bit in order to get things set up the way that they’d like for this series against the Braves. Let’s take a look at how the Phillies are shaping up for this series, what to watch out for and what my personal outlook is for this particular series.

Starting Pitching

As far as starters go, the Braves will have the advantage here largely because of the fact that the Phillies had to expend a a lot of resources just to even make it into the Postseason. Cristopher Sánchez had to start this past Friday, Aaron Nola started on just two days rest on Saturday (and wasn’t particularly effective) and Zack Wheeler was forced to go on Sunday, so Sánchez would likely be the Game 2 starter and if Wheeler shows up (likely Game 3, if necessary) then he’ll be pitching on short rest. Jesús Luzardo has essentially been rushed back from the shoulder inflammation that he’d been dealing with for September and if he does pitch, it could be in a short burst rather than any type of extended start.

Depending on how Luzardo feels, he might be the Game 1 starter. If it’s more of an opener-type deal then Andrew Painter could get the bulk of those innings for Game 1. Either way, it’s certainly not an ideal situation for Philadelphia coming into a three-game series against the Braves.

Sánchez has been solid over the past month or so but the Braves proved that they can score runs on him, so that wouldn’t be an impossible task if they have to face him. Luzardo utterly dominated Atlanta in his last outing against the Braves but again, he’s coming off of an injury and may not be as effective in his first appearance back. Nola just might be exhausted after having pitched more often than usual over the course of this past week. Painter has certainly been tricky for the Braves to deal with so far but again, it’s not an impossible task to score runs off of him.

With all of that being said, Wheeler has always been tough on the Braves and I’d imagine that one less day of rest wouldn’t be enough to throw him off. Outside of that, it really feels like the Braves are catching the Phillies in a vulnerable spot as far as their starting pitching goes. That’s not to say that Philadephia’s just going to be serving up meatballs for the Braves to feast upon but there’s definitely a scenario where the Braves can find themselves getting into Philly’s bullpen early and that could reap some benefits for Atlanta. However, if this rotation performs as expected and the Braves continue to struggle at the plate early on in games (Atlanta has only hit .242/.296/.383 in the first six innings of games this year, good for just a .298 wOBA an 86 wRC+, which is the second-worst mark in baseball so far), then they’re probably going to need some more late heroics in order to pull something off.

Bullpen

Philadelphia’s bullpen also has some questions heading into this series. Jhoan Duran is ready to go and he’ll likely be very tough to deal with if he does enter the game but outside of that, there’s nobody who’s particularly imposing in this relief corps. Jonathan Bowlan willbe on the roster but there’s a question of how effective that he’ll be since he’s been dealing with a groin strain here in the latter portion of September and he hasn’t pitched since September 17. If he does turn out to be healthy and effective then Atlanta will have a tough challenge on their hands but if not, Philadelphia’s bullpen depth will be put to the test during this series.

Don Mattingly has come to trust rookie hurler Alex McFarlane out of the bullpen here in the second half of the season and for the most part, he’s been very effective. With that being said, the Braves will be coming into this game having tagged McFarlane with his worst appearance of the season back on September 6, which is when they got him for three runs off of three hits — including that infamous homer from Ronald Acuña Jr. that set off furiously-goofy debates about how long a home run trot should be. Tim Mayza has been relatively reliable for them so far and the Phillies will also be hoping that new acquisition José Urquidy can deliver.

Still, there is a lot of uncertainty about whether or not the Phillies can get to Duran without stepping on a landmine. José Alvarado has always had his fair share of adventures, so there’s another guy who could be tricky for the Braves to deal with but they’ve also had success against him in the past. This isn’t a bad bullpen by any means but it’s also not one to be feared, either — especially considering that in the converse of their early -inning struggles, the Braves have hit .250/.319/.437 with a .329 wOBA and 107 wRC+ across the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings this season. If the Braves are going to put runs on the board, this’ll likely be their best chance to do it against the relief portion of Philadelphia’s pitching staff.

Offense

You have to respect a lineup that still has Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber lurking in it. They’ve done enough damage to the Braves in the past that it would be foolish to imagine that they wouldn’t be dangerous. Schwarber has definitely enjoyed his time hitting against the Braves this season and Harper has shown that he can turn the switch on at any given moment. It really wouldn’t be shocking if those two found it in them to send some more torment towards Atlanta’s way.

With that being said, those two haven’t exactly been tearing it up in the short term coming into the Postseason. If anything, the Phillies have been relying on guys like Derek Hill, Alec Bohm and Edmundo Sosa to carry them in the Postseason. Perhaps that explains a lot about why it took them all 162 games to lock down a Postseason spot but either way, those guys could be very tricky to deal with in this series. Hill already proved in this ballpark how dangerous he could be after he hit a bases-clearing double off of Chris Sale during that fateful series not too long ago. The Postseason is full of stories of unsung heroes causing trauma and grief for opponents so that’s definitely something to watch out for.

Still, this isn’t exactly the deep and dangerous Phillies lineup that the Braves had to deal with in both 2022 and 2023 when Philadelphia bounced Atlanta out of the Postseason on two consecutive occasions. Trea Turner has had a down season, Bryson Stott and Bryan De La Cruz have both slowed down recently, Brandon Marsh and Justin Crawford haven’t really been tearing it up on a consistent basis and J.T. Realmuto’s production has fallen off of a cliff. Luis Arraez has usually been a thorn in Atlanta’s side but if he plays, he’ll be coming off of a spraing ankle and to be honest, I wouldn’t expect him to play. Over the course of the entire 2026 season and up until Game 162, the Phillies were tied with the Reds and Rockies for the lowest wRC+ in all of baseball (91) and that number has only gone up slightly (94) since August 1.

I wish I could say that the Braves have the clear advantage here but Atlanta has only produced 91 wRC+ as a team since August 1 and it’s only slightly better for the Braves when you extrapolate through to the rest of the season (98 wRC+). Someone’s going to have to get a big hit and some point and hopefully Atlanta’s deeper lineup will be able to get the job done with the home field advantage.

Defense/Base Running

Well, this one is pretty clear-cut. The Braves will be heading into the Postseason having posted a Top-5 defense in all of baseball according to OAA (22) and DRS (63). Once the Phillies acquired Luis Arraez, they basically decided to go all-in on offense while hoping that nothing disastrous happens out in the field. Considering that Philadelphia’s OAA for the season has been -14 and their DRS is all the way down at -43, the Braves would seem to be much less likely to give away extra outs. That’s huge in a such a short-sample size as any given Postseason series and Atlanta’s advantage on defense really could come in handy if these games end up being extremely close.

With that being said, the Phillies have done a better job running the bases when compared to Atlanta. This was a point of emphasis for the Braves heading into the season and unfortunately, things haven’t really changed for the better over the course of the season. The Braves are sitting on -4 Baserunning runs according to Baseball Savant, while the Phillies have a positive value of 9 Baserunning Runs so far this season — good for the third-best mark in baseball. Both teams are in the same neighborhood when it comes to preventing stolen bases but it’s pretty clear that Atlanta’s probably going to have the tougher task of preventing the Phillies from running wild on the basepaths.

Overall Outlook

I’m going to say that Atlanta’s home field advantage is going to be huge in this series. While Atlanta’s offense hasn’t been particularly great across the board so far this season, they’ve produced at a very solid level at home, to the tune of a .259/.321/.428 collective slash line along with .327 wOBA and 106 wRC+. Ronald Acuña Jr. has started to heat up recently, Michael Harris II has been a very consistent hitter so far, Matt Olson has had himself another great year and hopefully Drake Baldwin and Mauricio Dubón will both rise to the occasion as well.

On top of that, the Braves will also have the advantage of having a more reliable bullpen and being pretty well set up for the first two games of the series. Chris Sale and Tyler Mahle will be getting the ball for Game 1 and 2 and we’ve known that for a while now, compared to the situation that the Phillies have been dealing with. If both Sale and Mahle perform as advertised then you have to like their chances when it comes to turning things over to this particular bullpen late in the game.

Philadelphia may have expended too many resources and too much energy just to get across the finish line in the NL Wild Card race and the Braves will have to take advantage of that. The neutral fan in me believes that the Braves have the edge and of course the objective fan in me believes that the Braves are going to pull this off as well. With that being said, this is a weird sport, this is a weird team and these two teams are so familiar that anything could be on the table as far as results go.

With that being said, you play all of these games to get home field advantage for a reason and I feel like that could make all the difference in the world for the Braves. Atlanta won the overall season series and went 4-2 against Philadelphia in Cobb County. All the Braves need are two more wins and they’ll be getting on a plane to Los Angeles. We’ll see what happens.

Game 1: Tuesday, September 29 at 2:00 p.m. ET
Game 2: Wednesday, September 30 at 2:00 p.m ET
Game 3 (if neccessary): Thursday, October 1 at TBD (2:00 p.m. ET or 8:00 p.m. ET)
All games televised on NBC and streamed on Peacock
All games will be on ESPN Radio and the Braves Radio Network (680 The Fan/93.7 FM)

Rick Rizzs Happy Totals: 76
Dan Wilson Tough One Tonights: 86
Run Differential: -58
2025: 90-72, +72
2024: 85-77, +69
2023: 88-74, +99
2022: 90-72, +67

wRC+: 102 (10th)
Rotation ERA-/FIP-: 105/98 (19th/13th)
Bullpen ERA-/FIP-: 115/103 (27th/20th)
OAA: -57 (30th)
BsR: -4.6 (24th)

Mariners fWAR leader: Randy Arozarena, 5.6
Mariners bWAR leader: Randy Arozarena, 5.6

Beef Boy Bombs: 23
Josh Naylor SB: 30 for 39
Julio HR-SB: 22-22
Ty France Memorial HBP Counter: Randy Arozarena, 26

Concussions: 2
All-Stars: 1

Last time a 1B stole 30 bases in back-to-back seasons: 1922
Combined Naylor, Cal, Julio wRC+: 98
Combined Naylor, Cal, Julio wRC+, 2025: 143
Cole Young DRS: 16
Cole Young OAA: -5
Combined Refsnyder and Ward wRC+: 29
Randy Arozarena wRC+: 151 (3rd)
Last time a Mariner was in the top 3 in wRC+: 1995 (Edgar, 1st, 182)
Players with six consecutive 20-20 seasons: 5 (Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonds, Bobby Abreu, Willy Mays, Randy Arozarena)
J.P. career rWAR as a Mariner: 21.8 (12th)
Dominic Canzone wRC+ vs LHP: 147

Logan Gilbert K: 205 (8th)
Piggyback starts: 4
ERA in piggyback starts: 2.50
Emerson Hancock 2023-2025 ERA: 4.81
Emerson Hancock 2026 ERA: 3.57
Bryan Woo changeup RV/100: 3.7

Seranthony Domínguez WPA: 1.12
Andrés Muñoz K%: 37.1% (4th of 258)
José Ferrer GB%: 56.2% (18th of 258)
José Ferrer BABIP: .329 (226th of 258)
Eduard Bazardo HR/9: 1.74 (21st of 258)
Matt Brash IP: 16.2

2026 Mariners among the 50 Greatest Mariners: 8
2026 among the 50 greatest Mariner seasons: I don’t know, like, 40th?

Piggyback rides: Randy Arozarena, +1.2 cWPA
A pig in a poke: Cal Raleigh, -1.3 cWPA

Seasons since Mariners’ last playoff appearance: 1

The book is now closed on the 2026 Washington Nationals season. They finished the season 77-85, making an 11 win improvement from last season. This was a true step forward season, but there is still a way to go. James Wood summarized the season well when he told me, “We should be proud of how far we’ve come, but there is still a lot more to improve on”. 

As we wrap up the season, I want to focus on the positives. While there are some areas that will need to be improved, the Nats exceeded expectations. The betting markets are not gospel, but on BetMGM, the Nationals over/under win total was 65.5 games. They were expected to be a bottom feeder team.

Those expectations were not misplaced in my opinion. The Nats were coming off a disastrous 66-96 season, where the final record was flattering if anything. Last season, the Nats had a -212 run differential. Based on that run differential, they should have been a 100 loss team. Instead of adding pieces, the Nats traded their best starter and reliever in the offseason.

Hopes were not high in the offseason. In addition to the betting markets, the local media was bearish on this team. Mark Zuckerman got local reporters to predict the Nats win total, and nobody had the team winning more than 75 games. I was not included in this, but I had the Nats having a similar record to last season.

I was hopeful that improved player development and strides from core players would help them avoid a 100 loss season. However, the Nats just seemed outgunned in a competitive NL East division. Most pundits thought that Blake Butera and his group were in for a long year. 

However, that did not turn out to be the case. It did not take long for fans to realize that this offense was going to be special. Even as the pitching struggled, the bats were firing on all cylinders. James Wood and CJ Abrams both had great seasons, but there were so many different heroes along the way.

We saw so many players take major strides offensively. Luis Garcia Jr. and Curtis Mead took monster leaps before being traded. Jacob Young got to 10 home runs on the season, and that might not even be a top three offensive success story of the year. I thought Keibert Ruiz was damaged goods, but he turned in a career year. 

Even in this last game of the season, we saw the fruits of this offensive turnaround with another breakout star. Andres Chaparro looked like your typical slugger who was too good for AAA but not good enough for the big leagues. He turned into a monster in the second half with an OPS over 1.000 with 12 homers and a .306 average. On the last day of the season, Chaparro hit two home runs to finish his breakout year in a big way.

You have to give a lot of credit to the Nats new hitting coaches. Matt Borgschulte leads the way, but he works very closely with Andrew Aydt and Shawn O’Malley. Blake Butera talked about how those three work so well together and have such complimentary skillsets.

Borgschulte has been a hitting coach in the majors and minors. Despite being 35, he is highly experienced. Meanwhile, Andrew Aydt is an expert on the biomechanics side of things. He came from Driveline and put together plans on how to maximize a hitter’s swing. If anybody needed advice mechanically, Aydt was the guy. Meanwhile, Shawn O’Malley cut his teeth in the Mariners system as a hitting coach. He is also the only one to have big league experience.

This group was such an upgrade on the Darnell Coles operation we saw for years. It shows you that coaching does in fact matter. The 2026 season was truly evidence that it sometimes is on coaching. This coaching staff truly elevated the players.

There were a ton of positives this season, but as James Wood said, this group wants more. Blake Butera felt like he was in two different minds at the end of the season. He knew this was a step forward season, but there was also this tinge of disappointment because he knew it could have been better.

He is already putting together a plan for this team to have another 11 win improvement in 2027. Butera stressed the importance of this offseason. He told me,  “With the strides we made this season, we need to make sure those players come back next season not only the same, but better”.

While players such as James Wood and CJ Abrams had monster years, there are still hitters with more in the tank. On the pitching side, Butera said they have moved in the right direction but they still need to see further improvements. 

For his part, James Wood said that another 11 win jump starts with improving the little things. He told me he wants to find ways to help get the team one or two more wins. Wood also mentioned that he needs to improve defensively and he cost the team runs at times.

With such a young team, if each player just gets a little bit better, it could go a long way. However, this should also be an opportunity for the team to bring in outside help. Blake Butera has downplayed the role of veteran leadership, but he said it obviously would not hurt. I think it would be a real sign of intent to go out and truly augment this core.

For the first time in a while, this team looks to be on the cusp of something special. That run differential, which was -212 last year, was +6 this season. This season was not a fluke, it was a transformational year. However, they will need to capitalize on this success.

Obviously, they will have a big decision to make with CJ Abrams. The Nats shortstop/second baseman has been in trade rumors for a while. That did not stop him from putting together a career year though. He hit 33 homers, stole 34 bases and drove in 106 runs. Hopefully the Nats can build around Abrams and make the playoffs with him in DC.

I think this is possible if the right moves are made. The blown save record was a big talking point this season, and rightfully so. If the Nats can find a way to solve the bullpen puzzle, they could pick up several more wins just by doing that. At the end of the year, guys like Erik Tolman and Jack Sinclair stepped up. However, I still think this team needs a true closer.

With all of the heartbreaking losses, this Nats team had to show their true character. In fact, Blake Butera told me the thing he was most proud of this season was “the resiliency”. He admitted there were times this season where he was not sure how they would respond. 

In Ted Lasso, they talk about being a Goldfish and having a short memory. Butera brought that up and said he has “A bunch of Goldfish”, who can quickly turn the page after a tough loss. Hopefully that resiliency won’t have to be tested as much next year.

There were ups and downs, but this was the best Nationals season since 2019. I know the bar is low, but this was still a lot of fun. After years of concern, I finally feel optimism around the Nats. Now it is time to capitalize on that in the offseason. Thanks for a great season. The best is yet to come under Blake Butera and Paul Toboni!