Phillies and Nationals for five
A month or so ago, this five-game set between the Phillies and Nationals appeared to be much more meaningful than it looks to be now. The Phillies, fresh off a 10-1 drubbing on Sunday night, head now to Nationals Park where they'll likely need to secure a series sweep to enter the final weekend of play with even a glimmer of hope at a postseason opportunity.

Zach Eflin makes the start in the series opener, aiming to follow up on a stellar start his last time out where he tossed seven strong innings while surrendering one run on five hits. The Nationals counter with Patrick Corbin who was also solid in his last outing, tossing six strong innings in a win in St. Louis.

“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” manager Gabe Kapler said following Sunday's loss. “We’re going to have to win out. We understand that that’s a tall task. We also understand that that’s a possibility. There’s not a guy in that room that’s not going to fight until the very end.”

The Nationals, Brewers, Mets, and Cubs are all ahead of the Phillies right now in the Wild Card standings, so even just winning five games over the Nats won't necessarily catapult the Phils into a Wild Card spot.

The Phils enter play today six games out of a postseason shot with eight games remaining on the schedule.
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Follow Patrick on Twitter: @PGordonPBR

BY PATRICK GORDON
Managing Editor
pgordon@philadelphiabaseballreview.com

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