Phillies to face Miami Marlins in NL Wild Card series

The matchup is set.

The Philadelphia Phillies will face the Miami Marlins in the National League Wild Card round. Game 1 is on Tuesday. All three games will take place at Citizens Bank Park and start at 8:08 p.m. EDT. ESPN will have all three games.

Miami clinched a postseason berth on Saturday with a win against the Pirates. A Diamondbacks loss against the Astros on Sunday ensured that Miami would finish the year as the second Wild Card team in the National League with 84 wins. Since the Marlins have the tiebreaker over the Diamondbacks, the Marlins get the higher seed.

The Marlins end the year on a hot streak. Entering today, they have won five of their last six. With Arizona losing four straight to end of the season, the Marlins have essentially snuck into the No. 5 playoff spot and are rewarded with a matchup with the Phillies.

Miami is operating with only three starting pitchers and all of them are lined up to pitch in the series. While nothing has been officially announced, here are the projected starting pitching matchups:

• Game 1: RHP Zack Wheeler vs. LHP Jesús Luzardo
• Game 2: RHP Aaron Nola vs. LHP Braxton Garrett
• Game 3: LHP Ranger Suárez vs. RHP Edward Cabrera

Both Sandy Alcantara and Eury Pérez, the Marlins’ top starting pitchers, will miss the series due to injury. Luis Arraez has been dealing with an ankle injury, but he told reporters he expects to be in the lineup on Tuesday.

The Marlins’ bullpen matches up well with the Phillies offense. Lefty closer Tanner Scott has been one of the best relievers in baseball this season. They also have A.J. Puk, Andrew Nardi and Steven Okert all available out of the bullpen from the left side. Former Phillie David Robertson had a really good September and is just as good against lefties as he is against righties.

The Marlins won the season series over the Phillies 7-6. Four of the Marlins’ seven wins against the Phillies this season came in one-run games.

Miami’s remarkable turnaround in close games is a big reason why they are in the postseason. Last season, the Marlins were 24-40 in one-run games. They are 35-16 in one-run games in 2023.

The Phillies will hold a workout on Monday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park prior to the start of the series.

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