The Philadelphia Phillies have lost another series in the month of September, this time to the Milwaukee Brewers. Frustratingly, the Phillies' magic number remains at two as the 2026 regular season heads into its last three games. The Phillies still have a lead for the final Wild Card spot, but Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper's postgame comments shouldn't really give Phillies fans ease over the next 72 hours.
Following Thursday's loss, Harper was asked about the magic number not dropping down over the last few days and his level of concern with only three days to work with to get into the postseason. Harper tried to give a vote of confidence in the club's ability to maintain control.
“Yeah, I mean, you said it,” Harper said, per Dave Uram. “I mean, we're in the driver's seat, so we gotta win and take care of our business. We can't really worry about any other teams or what they're doing, so we just got to keep going, and, uh, you know, obviously Tampa's a great team as well, so we gotta go out and play our baseball.”
Phillies have cold reality staring right at them ahead of Rays series
Harper's sentiment is what the club should believe as a motivational tactic, and to convince themselves they are a team worthy of postseason contention. That mindset also could hurt them. That lead could all but vanish if they're not careful, and if they're not playing the brand of baseball they should, just days away from a run at the World Series. Through 21 games this month, the Phillies own a team .655 OPS, the worst in all of MLB. Perhaps that level of offensive futility really is “our baseball" for them right now, but all Phillies fans would like that to improve immediately.
The Phillies could miss the 2026 MLB postseason. It sounds far-fetched from where they came from, starting with a 9-19 record, then surging to a 21-7 record in the month of August. They put themselves squarely back in the playoff picture yet again, but have sputtered at 9-12 in the month of September. Pair that with the resurgence of the other teams in the Wild Card race, and the Phillies become one of the last potential teams to clinch a spot. They may be in the driver's seat, but no one has taken control of where this thing is headed.
Yes, heading into Friday, the Phillies hold a two-game lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks, but with the D-Backs holding the tiebreaker, the Phillies can ill afford to lose another series before October and leave things up to fate. There is a world where the Phillies lose the series against the No. 1 seed Tampa Bay Rays (already clinched, but who cares?) and the Diamondbacks surge past the San Diego Padres in a sweep and the Phillies are left on the outside looking in. The Phillies can clinch it themselves with a series win, but as Phillies fans have seen, they often make it much harder than Harper's quote implied it will be.
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