The Final Stretch
The Major League Baseball regular season is nearing an end. The Phillies find themselves in a great spot as the push for playoff spots continues. Although they have not clinched, there is no reason they shouldn’t make the playoffs. A red October is on the horizon for the Phillies. Unfortunately, it does not seem like there will be October baseball played in Philadelphia. They have six games in October to end the season, all on the road, and they are likely to play on the road in the wild-card round. With playoffs on the horizon, let’s take a look at the remaining schedule for the Phillies.
At Atlanta
After they close out a three-game series in Miami, the Phillies head to Atlanta. This three-game series will be played over the weekend.
9/16 @ 7:20 pm
9/17 @ 7:20 pm
9/18 @ 1:35 pm
The Phillies will only win one game this series. The NL East has three extremely talented teams. After picking on the Nationals and Marlins in the last two series, the Phillies will win the first game against the Braves before losing the next two.
Vs. Toronto
Next, they are back home for a six-game homestand. First, Toronto comes to town for a two-game series in interleague play.
9/20 @ 6:45 pm
9/21 @ 6:45pm
I think the Phillies will split this series. The Blue Jays gave them trouble in Toronto earlier this year and the Phillies always seem to struggle in interleague play. However, both are good baseball clubs, and a series split seems fair.
Vs. Atlanta
After Toronto, the Phillies have another series against Atlanta, this time in South Philadelphia. This series is a chance for the Phillies to set a standard heading into the playoffs. The fans need to show up and hopefully, Citizens Bank Park is filled to the brim. It has lacked the intimidation factor it used to have, but there is no doubt a raucous CBP crowd can affect a baseball game.
9/22 @ 7:15 pm
9/23 @ 7:05 pm
9/24 @ 4:05 pm
9/25 @ 1:05 pm
The home-field advantage will come into play and like the series in Atlanta, the home team will win it. The Phils will take three of four from the Braves. This will give us plenty of hope heading into the playoffs, even though they probably lose to the Braves in the wild-card round. This will be an intense series, and I am excited to see what the Phillies bring to the field.
At Chicago
The Phillies end the year on a ten-game road trip. First, they head to Wrigley Field to take on the Cubs.
9/27 @ 7:40 pm
9/28 @ 7:40 pm
9/29 @ 2:20 pm
This will be a series sweep for the Phillies. Thomson has the boys playing great baseball and I do not expect a letdown in a series they should win. The Cubs season is crawling to an end as they are 21 games under .500. The Phillies are the better team and it will show.
At Washington
After Chicago, the Phillies head to Washington D.C for the last NL East battle of the year.
9/30 @ 7:05
10/1 @ 1:05
10/1 @ 7:05
10/2 @ 1:35
The Phillies will go into D.C and take three of four from the Nats. The Phillies and Nationals will split the doubleheader, but other than that one win, Philadelphia will continue its dominance over Washington this year.
At Houston
The last series of the season is in Houston. The Astros have the best record in the American League and have been a great team all season. Currently, they have a 12.5 game lead in the division so it will be interesting to see how many of their starters they have playing. In all likelihood they will have clinched the division by then.
10/3 @ 8:10 pm
10/4 @ 8:10 pm
10/5 @ 4:10 pm
The Phillies will drop the first two of this series before taking the last game of the season. You should not put too much stock into this series since it likely won’t have substantial playoff ramifications. I expect the Phillies and Astros to have their spots locked up. If the Phillies are in a battle for a particular wild card spot, they might win more than one game. Either way, a win to end the season is a good note heading into the playoffs.
The 2022 Philadelphia Phillies have 19 games remaining on the schedule. Six home games and 12 away games. I predict the Phillies will finish the year 12-7. The turnaround for Rob Thomson and this ball club has been remarkable and much more than what the fans expected heading into the season. Depending on the result in Miami tonight, the Phillies can end the year with 90 plus wins, which would give them 90 wins for the first time since 2011.
Photo Credit: Eric Hartline/USA TODAY Sports
