The Phillies are starting to run out of things to play for in the regular season. Sure, there’s still personal statistics and goals, such as Kyle Schwarber’s quest for Ryan Howard’s home run record and his own chances at MVP, but most team goals have been achieved or are on the precipice of being achieved. The NL East division championship has been secured and the magic number for a bye is as of this writing down to four. That bye is paramount, but it’s extremely likely that it too will be secured sometime
in the near future.
The only other thing to achieve would be the best record in MLB and thus homefield advantage throughout the postseason and into the World Series.
At the start of play on Wednesday, the Phillies and their 91 wins trailed the Milwaukee Brewers by 1.5 games for the best record in baseball. That is effectively 2.5 games though as the Brewers own the tiebreaker thanks to winning the season series against the Phillies 4-2. The next closest team to Philadelphia is the Toronto Blue Jays with 89 wins. The next closest NL team is a bit further back, with the Chicago Cubs at 88 wins. If things were to stay the way they are now, the Phillies would have home field advantage against everyone they could face in the postseason except the Brewers. The Phillies took two of three in Milwaukee this year but were swept at Citizens Bank Park for what it’s worth.
The Phillies have nine games to play remaining in the regular season with the conclusion of this series with the Dodgers. Those are on the road in Arizona and then home for the Marlins and Twins. The Brewers will finish their season with three in St. Louis, three in San Diego, and three at home with the Reds at the conclusion of their current series at home with the Angels. By opponent’s record, the Phillies will have an easier schedule overall in their remaining games than the Brewers. Milwaukee will also be playing two teams in the Padres and Reds who are, at the moment, still alive in regard to a postseason spot while the Phillies will play one.
However, there will be some sentiment that perhaps the Phillies should look to rest some players over the next week and a half, especially once they have officially clinched a bye. It’s a reasonable opinion, as the team has suffered a rash of late season injuries and can’t afford to have many more. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to get the likes of Schwarber or Bryce Harper off their feet for a few days or to put limits on starting pitchers and top bullpen arms in order to save some bullets for October.
So, should the Phillies push for home field advantage? Or should they look to give some players a rest before the regular season ends? Do you like their chances at getting the number one seed if they do try to go for it? Or are they better off locking into the second seed?
