Why the Phillies could actually upset the Dodgers in a wild-card game
By Jason Reed
2. The Philadelphia Phillies have had a lot of success against Walker Buehler
The matchup against Walker Buehler is very favorable at least historically for the Phillies. You could make the case that the Dodgers look at this and start Max Scherzer in a wild-card game but Buehler has been the best pitcher on the team all season long and is arguably the best big-game pitcher in baseball right now.
He would get the start.
The Phillies have not just hit Walker Buehler really well but they have beaten up on him in the process. It is a small sample size but Phillie hitters have 27 at-bats against Buehler and are hitting .324 with a 1.235 OPS.
Bryce Harper’s lone at-bat against Buehler resulted in a three-run home run while Brad Miller also has a home run against the former Vanderbilt right-handed pitcher.
In those 27 at-bats, the Phillies have scored five runs. While they likely won’t get that much against Buehler, it is conceivable that they can get 3-4 runs across before the Dodgers go to the bullpen. With Wheeler dealing, that would put them ahead.
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Granted, Buehler did not face the Phillies this year so the team did not face him during the best season of his career. But with the numbers we do have we can say that the group as a whole has hit the ball pretty well against Buehler.