Red October has swept through Philadelphia once again. The Philadelphia Phillies shut down the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS in four games, setting plenty of playoff records along the way. They’ll now look to the NLCS against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Nobody expected the trip to the World Series in 2022. However, the feeling is different in 2023. The Phillies are rolling on all cylinders, and the stats tell the story.
MLB Playoff Expansion
The MLB Playoffs expanded in 2022 with the addition of a third Wild Card team in each league. The change came only 10 years after the Wild Card play-in format began in 2012. Baseball also didn’t even have Wild Card teams in the playoffs until 1995.
The changes have increased the likelihood of broken records. More games mean more plate appearances and more chances for players to accomplish things that have never been done before.
While the Atlanta media has harped on the flaws of the new playoff system, modern playoff baseball has been incredibly exciting for the fans. It’s created the opportunity to promote the sport with unprecedented stories.
No team has captured that excitement quite like the Phillies since the most recent changes in 2022.
Phillies On Wild Card Hot Streak
Dave Dombrowski built the Phillies for the postseason. Whether or not you liked hearing that every time the team slumped this summer, you certainly know it’s true now.
Zack Wheeler is the ace of the staff who can take the ball for a dominant performance in the postseason, and the stats prove it. The lineup has the ability to catch fire at any point in time. Their unprecedented power numbers helped them through the first two playoff rounds.
When a rowdy crowd at Citizens Bank Park during Red October cheers on the Phillies, they can set unprecedented playoff records.
5 Stats That Define Philadelphia Phillies Playoff Momentum:
6 Home Runs in NLDS Game 3
The 10-2 victory in Game 3 of the NLDS set the crowd at Citizens Bank Park on fire. The Phillies slugged six home runs, tying an MLB record set by the Chicago Cubs in the NLDS in 2015. Nick Castellanos and Bryce Harper hit two each. Trea Turner and Brandon Marsh also went deep to show up an Atlanta Braves offense that tied a major league record with 307 home runs during the regular season.
Castellanos Stands Alone in MLB History
If you haven’t heard by now, Nick Castellanos is the only player in major league history with back-to-back multi-home run games during the postseason.
Give Him A Standing Ovation
The Phillies have made the MLB Playoffs 16 times in their history, and they’ve played 126 games. Somehow, they never had a player record four hits in a game until Trea Turner did it in Game 4 of the NLDS. Turner doubled in the 1st inning, singled in the 3rd, homered in the 5th, and singled in the 7th.
Wheeler Unhittable in Game 1 Starts
The Athletic’s Jayson Stark spoke on The Best Show Ever about the best Game 1 starter ever. Zack Wheeler has pitched 20 innings in three postseason Game 1 starts. He has scattered eight hits and allowed only one run. Stark pointed to the microscopic 0.45 ERA as the best in MLB history. Wheeler will take the ball for Game 1 of the NLCS for the Phillies.
Phillies Own Braves
The Phillies finished 14 games behind the Braves during the 2022 regular season. However, they beat their division foe in the NLDS. History repeated itself when the Phillies finished 14 games behind the Braves again in 2023, followed by another NLDS upset.
According to SportsCenter, their victory in the NLDS was the first time a team beat the same opponent in a postseason series in consecutive years after finishing 10 or more games behind that opponent in the regular-season standings both times.
