Phillies announce Wild Card Series roster, Game 1 starting lineup

The Phillies roster and Game 1 lineup is set for the 2022 NL Wild Card Series.

Red October baseball officially returns Friday afternoon, when the Philadelphia Phillies take on the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

In Game 1, right-hander Zack Wheeler will oppose southpaw José Quintana — who was connected to the Phillies in trade rumors this past summer, before the club instead acquired Noah Syndergaard from the Los Angeles Angels.

The Phillies’ 26-man Wild Card Series roster will consist of nine right-handed pitchers, four left-handers, two catchers, six infielders, and five outfielders:

Right-handed pitchers (9):

• Andrew Bellatti
• Connor Brogdon
• Seranthony Domínguez
• Zach Eflin
• Kyle Gibson
• Aaron Nola
• David Robertson
• Noah Syndergaard
• Zack Wheeler

Left-handed pitchers (4):

• José Alvarado
• Bailey Falter
• Brad Hand
• Ranger Suárez

Catchers (2):

• J.T. Realmuto
• Garrett Stubbs

Infielders (6):

• Alec Bohm
• Rhys Hoskins
• Nick Maton
• Jean Segura
• Edmundo Sosa
• Bryson Stott

Outfielders (5):

• Nick Castellanos
• Bryce Harper
• Brandon Marsh
• Kyle Schwarber
• Matt Vierling

As Gabrielle Starr notes, current Phillies players’ postseason experience before this past offseason was only a combined 22 games. A World Series champion executive himself, President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski has since added 84 games of postseason experience via free agency or trade to the Phillies roster. Kyle Schwarber — the 2022 National League home runs leader and 2016 World Series champion — accounts for 35 of those games.

Schwarber will lead off for the Phillies, followed by Rhys Hoskins, J.T. Realmuto, and Bryce Harper in the cleanup position. Matt Vierling will start in center field instead of Brandon Marsh, given the Cardinals’ starting pitcher is left-handed.

Harper recently told reporters that he is excited to be back in the postseason. His most recent appearance was in the 2017 National League Division Series against Schwarber’s former team — the Chicago Cubs. In five games and 23 plate appearances, Harper slashed just .211/.304/.421 with a double, home run and three RBI.

Harper has lost all four postseason series he has appeared in so far in his career (all with the Washington Nationals) — with the other three being the 2012 NLDS against the Cardinals, 2014 NLDS against the San Francisco Giants, and 2016 NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Surely, the reigning National League MVP is looking to snap the skid and seek redemption against a Cardinals team he lost to as a 19-year-old rookie one decade ago. For the Phillies franchise, they are seeking redemption against the team that beat them in their most recent postseason appearance 11 years ago.

Friday’s date is exactly 11 years since Roy Halladay and the Phils fell 1-0 to the Cardinals in the highly disappointing, series-deciding Game 5 NLDS matchup.