Three teams, three spots, one dead heat
Philadelphia had the upper hand on Friday night. Beat New York and the Phillies would have been alone at the top of the National League wild-card race. The Mets had other ideas, taking it 6-3 behind a six-hitter from Zac Thornton and two relievers.
Three teams finished the night at 85-69: the Phillies, the Chicago Cubs and the San Diego Padres. Three clubs, three wild-card spots, a perfect tie with eight games to go. Chicago had already slipped 6-4 to Cincinnati. San Diego then locked up the deadlock a few hours later by blasting Miami 8-2. Arizona sit five games back, out of realistic reach.
Andrew Painter takes the mound on Saturday afternoon in the third game of a four-game series. Across from him is Christian Scott (4-5, 3.76 ERA). The Phillies rookie is 3-9 with a 5.54 ERA on the season, a record that does not tell the full story.
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The real Painter showed up after July 31
Since his recall from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on July 31, Painter has looked like a different pitcher: 2-1, 3.58 ERA in nine starts. Last Sunday, he gave up one run in five innings in a 9-4 win over Atlanta. He has never faced the Mets in his career.
His importance doubled on Friday. The Phillies have now fallen to 0-2 in those makeshift bullpen games since Jesus Luzardo was placed on the injured list with a shoulder issue, retroactive to 15 days. The All-Star was scratched from his start last Saturday against the Braves: six pitchers were used, Atlanta won 12-2. On Friday, opener Tim Mayza got only one out and was tagged for three runs.
A 13.50 ERA out of the bullpen, and eight games left
Philadelphia’s relief corps is piling up the warning signs. Jonathan Bowlan left Thursday’s game with a tight right adductor. On Friday, Orion Kerkering served up a three-run homer to Juan Soto, his second long ball allowed in three outings. His ERA in that stretch: 13.50.
“When things aren’t going well, confidence isn’t exactly sky-high,” interim Phillies manager Don Mattingly admitted. “But we’ve got to put that aside now.”
Across the diamond, the Mets (70-84) have been eliminated since this week and have been below .500 since April. They’re already playing for 2027. Thornton, Nolan McLean and Scott have combined for a 3.40 ERA across 66 starts. Two rookies and a pitcher back from Tommy John surgery. New York’s future is being built while Philadelphia is fighting for the present.
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