The Philadelphia Phillies avoided having to make an appearance in the National League Wild Card round of the 2025 MLB postseason when they clinched the No. 2 seed in the NL last week.
However, because of that, the Phillies had to wait around for a few days while the Cincinnati Reds and Los Angeles Dodgers settled their series to determine the Phillies' National League Division Series opponent. Now we know that the No. 3 seed Dodgers will be heading to Philadelphia for a clash of division champs.
Prior to the end of the 2025 regular season, we offered our early prediction of the Phillies' playoff roster given the state of the team at the time. Now, let's take a look at the potential NLDS roster that Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and manager Rob Thomson may roll with when the series opens with Game 1 on Saturday at Citizen's Bank Park.
Phillies 2025 NLDS roster prediction ahead of titanic showdown vs. Dodgers
Starting pitchers (3): Cristopher Sánchez, Ranger Suárez, Jesús Luzardo
The starting rotation is fairly set, with three starting pitchers who will be on the NLDS roster. The Phillies won't need a fourth starter due to the built-in days off in this series.
Cristopher Sánchez will take the mound in Game 1 after the tremendous regular season that the left-hander showcased. It will be interesting to see how Rob Thomson constructs the rest of the starting staff.
Both Ranger Suárez and Jesús Luzardo pitched lights out down the homestretch of the regular season and can be trusted to toy with just about any lineup in baseball. It is increasingly likely that they could, and probably should, each get the nod to start Games 2 and 3.
Relief pitchers (9): Jhoan Duran, Orion Kerkering, Matt Strahm, David Robertson, Tanner Banks, Walker Buehler, Aaron Nola, Tim Mayza, Taijuan Walker
With the way off days are constructed in this series, it seems very likely that the Phillies will roll into October with 12 pitchers as there likely will not be a need to carry the maximum 13, per MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. It is also how the organization handled the 2024 NLDS roster.
The first five names on this list are locks. Nothing, with the exception of something unforeseen, could change the five back-end of the bullpen pitchers that make the roster.
It feels like Walker Buehler is also on the inside track to grab a spot in the Phillies' NLDS bullpen given the fact that he has gotten batters out in his short time in a Phillies' uniform and his successful postseason track record.
Aaron Nola had a solid outing in his final regular season performance. His injury-ridden and inconsistent overall regular season could limit some of the confidence the organization has in their longest tenured player. Nola has also never pitched in relief so he'll be trying out a new role out of the bullpen.
That leaves two bullpen spots up for grabs between Tim Mayza, Lou Trivino, Taijuan Walker and maybe Max Lazar. Mayza may have an advantage in the competition because he could be the third left-hander in the bullpen. He could come in handy facing a lineup like the Dodgers, who are left-handed heavy.
Lazar will not make the roster. He has scuffled down the stretch. Trivino has pitched well and could get the nod. However, Walker should realistically get the last spot. He has earned it. The right-hander turned in some solid innings as both a starter and reliever during the regular season. With so many other relief options, they could use him as a long man should a starter begin to falter.
Catchers (2): J.T. Realmuto, Rafael Marchán
J.T. Realmuto will start every game of the postseason, as he has the previous three Octobers, unless he incurs an injury. Marchán played well enough to earn the backup job, but will likely only be called on to be used as a pinch hitter if Thomson needs a switch hitter.
Infielders (6): Bryce Harper, Bryson Stott, Trea Turner, Alec Bohm, Edmundo Sosa, Otto Kemp
The starting five infielders of Bryce Harper, Bryson Stott, Trea Turner and Alec Bohm will all be on the roster. Edmundo Sosa is also a lock to make the team as he is versatile around the infield and can hit left-handed pitching exceptionally well.
It would appear that Otto Kemp has a real shot at making the NLDS roster now that Johan Rojas is nursing a quad injury and will not be available for the series, per Corey Seidman of Phillies Nation.
Kemp may not be the defensive wizard that Rojas is, but he has shown that he can swing the bat at the big-league level after returning to the major leagues in early September.
Outfielders (6): Kyle Schwarber, Harrison Bader, Brandon Marsh, Max Kepler, Nick Castellanos, Weston Wilson
The outfield seems pretty set heading into Red October. Who would have thought that would be the case with this Phillies team just a few short months ago?
Kyle Schwarber will continue to serve as Thomson's designated hitter, while Harrison Bader mans center field, Brandon Marsh takes a majority of the reps in left field, and a Nick Castellanos/Max Kepler platoon handles right field.
Weston Wilson will likely make the roster because he can do some damage against left-handed pitching.
The fact that there are not many roster construction question marks just goes to show how good this team can be when its players are firing on all cylinders. If the Phillies perform the way they did after the trade deadline, they have a legitimate shot at making a deep postseason run.