The season is over and now the real fun begins as Red October is upon us and our beloved Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies wrapped up their franchise-record 35th series win of the season with a 2-1 extra-inning win over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday.
Sunday also marked the final day of regular season action and Major League Baseball's 2025 playoff bracket is set. Now we know what the Phillies' path through the 2025 MLB postseason looks like.
The Phillies clinched the National League East way back on Sept. 15, one day after booking their ticket to the playoffs. They were the first team to clinch their division, and that left them playing out the rest of the season looking for a top-two seed in the NL to guarantee a first-round bye.
With a 96-66 record, the Phillies instead finished with the second-best record in MLB, which will certainly help them if they make it all the way to the World Series. But how will they get there? What's the Phillies' path through the gauntlet of the always tough National League playoff picture?
Let's dig in.
Phillies' playoff bracket begins with NLDS matchup against Dodgers or Reds
As the No. 2 seed, we already know that the Phillies will be kicking up their heels when the calendar flips to October. Okay, not really. Even though they get to skip the Wild Card round, they'll still be active with practices and an intrasquad game to try to stay sharp.
When the best-of-five National League Division Series gets underway on Oct. 4, the Phillies will be playing either the No. 6 seed Cincinnati Reds or the No. 3 seed Los Angeles Dodgers who will battle in the Wild Card series.
Phillies fans finished the season as Reds fans, rooting for Cincinnati to put the rival New York Mets out of the playoffs — which they did! If the Reds wind up emerging victorious over the Dodgers to advance to the NLDS, it would certainly be an upset. The Phillies went 3-3 in the season series against Cincinnati.
If the Dodgers advance to the NLDS, well, we know all about the threat that the defending World Series champions pose. The Phillies did win the season series against the Dodgers 4-2, however.
The other good news is that the Phillies will have home-field advantage and be welcoming their opponent to the crazy postseason environment of the Bank.
Who could Phillies face in NLCS and World Series?
The Phillies will be hoping to return to the National League Championship Series for the third time in four years this October. The last time they were there was in 2023, and we all remember the devastating seven-game loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Game 1 of the best-of-seven NLCS is scheduled for Oct. 13. If the Phillies advance past the NLDS, there are three possible teams they could wind up playing.
Waiting on the other side of the NL playoff bracket is the formidable No. 1 seed Milwaukee Brewers. The Brew Crew is awaiting the winner of the Wild Card matchup between the No. 4 seed Chicago Cubs and the No. 5 seed San Diego Padres. If Milwaukee advances, they'll have home-field advantage through the NLCS. If either Chicago or San Diego upsets the Brewers, the Phillies will retain home-field advantage in the NLCS.
How did the Phillies fare against their possible NLCS opponents? They dropped the season series to the Brewers 2-4. They won 4-2 against the Cubs and finished in a 3-3 draw with the Padres.
If the Phillies advance all the way to the World Series, it will be their first return since losing out to Houston in 2022. With the inevitable twists and turns of the MLB postseason, it's far too early to tell who they could match up against. What we do know is the six teams that will be representing the American League who could be in the Fall Classic.
Here's what the AL playoff field looks like:
No. 1: Toronto Blue Jays
No. 2: Seattle Mariners
No. 3: Cleveland Guardians
No. 4: New York Yankees
No. 5: Boston Red Sox
No. 6: Detroit Tigers
We still have to wait to see how this version of the Phillies performs in Red October. We just know that it will be difficult to consider this season a success unless they reach the World Series and bring a third franchise championship back to Philadelphia.