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| Cristopher Sanchez will make the start in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series for the Phillies. | CREDIT: IMGN Studios |
After Tuesday’s 5-3 loss to the Braves, Philadelphia enters Game 2 of the Wild Card Series with one remaining route forward: win twice at Truist Park. Cristopher Sánchez faces Tyler Mahle at 2 p.m., with the Phillies’ fifth consecutive postseason appearance in danger of becoming a two-day stay.
Inside the clubhouse, Bryson Stott said, the morning looked familiar.
“Everyone is kind of doing their same routines,” he said Wednesday. “Just enjoying the day so far and doing the stuff that we’ve done for the last eight months.”
The routine is familiar. The consequences have changed.
Here are five things to watch.
1. Can Sánchez make the bullpen wait?
The most useful number Sánchez can put on the scoreboard Wednesday might be the inning.
Seven would help. Eight would help more.
Sánchez finished the regular season 18-7 with a 2.91 ERA and 231 strikeouts in 207 innings. His September ERA was 5.12, but his last two outings were more encouraging: four earned runs in 13⅓ innings, with 16 strikeouts. Against Tampa Bay on Friday, he allowed two runs over seven innings and struck out 10.
Stott remembers a different Sánchez from their days together before either became established in Philadelphia.
“He threw really hard and kind of had no idea where the ball was going,” Stott said. “He was hitting 99 with nobody in the stands.”
Now the Phillies need the command that completed that transformation. Watch his efficiency early. Long counts could force Mattingly into his bullpen before he wants to go there. Sánchez pitching deep would give Philadelphia choices about the finish instead of another scramble for outs.
2. Can they make Mahle throw their pitch?
Sale is finished for this series. That sounds encouraging until the Phillies remember what Mahle did to them in September.
In two starts, the right-hander allowed one earned run over 13 innings. Philadelphia struck out only six times against him, yet barely scored. Making contact was not enough.
Mahle posted a 1.99 ERA in nine starts after joining Atlanta, improving substantially upon his 5.13 ERA with San Francisco. Cincinnati did reach him for five earned runs in five innings in his final regular-season start.
Bohm’s proposed solution begins with refusing to expand the strike zone.
“Make him throw us pitches in the heart of the zone,” Bohm said, “and kind of stick to our approach.”
Watch what happens when Mahle falls behind. The Phillies need to punish those counts rather than help him escape them. One hittable pitch can start a rally. Chasing the next one can end it.
3. Can the biggest names create a bigger inning?
Turner, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper combined to go 1-for-10 Tuesday. Schwarber supplied the hit and a walk. Harper went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, while Turner reached on a hit-by-pitch but finished hitless.
Bohm’s first-inning double and J.T. Realmuto’s seventh-inning triple produced all three Philadelphia runs. The Phillies finished with six hits and went 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position.
Realmuto supplied the moment they needed. They need more moments Wednesday.
“We have all the faith in the world in him to step up in big spots,” Bohm said of Realmuto. “And he did exactly that yesterday.”
Watch whether Philadelphia can connect productive at-bats instead of relying on another two-out rescue. The stars do not all need to homer. They need to reach, advance runners and give the next hitter something useful to work with.
4. Who finishes if Duran cannot do it all again?
Tuesday’s plan brought Jhoan Duran into the seventh inning with a one-run lead. He threw 27 pitches across two innings before Austin Riley’s three-run homer decided the game.
His availability and workload Wednesday require a fresh assessment. Another extended appearance cannot simply be assumed.
Alex McFarlane threw 16 pitches Tuesday and allowed a run. Across his last two appearances, including Sunday’s regular-season finale, he has surrendered three earned runs on five hits in two innings.
Jonathan Bowlan has not pitched since Sept. 17 because of a right groin injury. José Alvarado allowed six earned runs and four walks in three innings across his last five regular-season appearances. Andrew Painter did not pitch Tuesday.
That makes Painter a potentially important option, though an available arm is not an announced assignment.
Watch who warms up when Sánchez encounters trouble. Mattingly may have to trust someone he bypassed in Game 1. The later that decision arrives, the better Philadelphia’s chances of making it with a lead.
5. Can urgency stay out of their decision-making?
The Phillies cannot afford careless baseball. They also cannot afford to treat every pitch as their last chance.
Turner was caught stealing in Game 1. Atlanta’s decisive rally, meanwhile, began with two outs: a Michael Harris II single, an Ozzie Albies hit-by-pitch and Riley’s homer.
Those sequences illustrate how quickly an opportunity disappears—or becomes three runs.
Stott’s message Wednesday was to keep the assignment smaller than the stakes.
“If you try to win the game in the first inning, it gets tough,” he said. “You’re playing 27 outs and you keep passing the baton to the next guy in the lineup.”
Watch the decisions between the highlights: the pitch taken, the throw made, the extra base attempted. Philadelphia needs enough sound choices to earn another game.
Thursday can wait. Wednesday cannot.
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