The Philadelphia Phillies are fighting their way through the pennant race as the calendar flips to September. They've gained considerable ground in the playoff standings and now have made capturing the NL East title a reasonable goal by season's end. The Phillies have settled into being a consistent ball club and could take advantage of the Atlanta Braves' lack of the same level of baseline performance.
The identity of the Phillies has been entirely different since the arrival of Luis Arraez, and it's allowed them to reintroduce themselves as championship contenders in the second half of the regular season. They seem to have finally found their footing and find themselves among the best teams in the National League again. For now, the Braves still hold the division crown, but they also don't have the luxury of resting on their laurels with a month left to go.
Braves are in danger of losing NL East crown to Phillies for third straight year
Phillies fans accepted early on through the miserable April muck that the division was just too much to ask for this year. That changed drastically, crawling back from a 9-19 hole to a spot in the current Wild Card chase. It also helped that the Braves were starting to slide during the streaks the Phillies went on in both July and August. Two separate times, the Braves held a 9.0 game lead, but that lead would eventually shrink, although it was never relinquished.
The Phillies in August felt energized and embraced a whole new plate approach. Although both clubs' starter ERAs were eerily similar - the Phillies at 2.99 to the Braves' 2.97 - the Phillies sported a team .763 OPS, third-best in the league. The Braves' .698 OPS ranked 19th. There was an even greater separation in OBP, with the Phillies at .353, No. 1 in MLB, and the Braves at .301, 26th in MLB.
The Phillies put up a historic 21-7 run in August. That's not the new normal by any means of what to expect out of the Phillies the remainder of the season and the postseason. What it does represent is a shift in offensive approach and a change that feels sustainable for the long term.
The Braves are a well-run organization, but it also feels like their vulnerabilities are starting to show. They've dealt with injuries on top of severe underperformance from some of their assumed mainstays on the roster. They've ridden on the shoulders of Chris Sale, but can they really count on him being the best pitcher on the planet heading into October? The Phillies have their issues, but they've gotten contributions from everyone on their roster. The way they're playing right now, a lot would have to go wrong for the head-to-head to go poorly against the Braves, who feel more like a house of cards than ever before.
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