The Braves and Phillies face off again in October in a rivalry shaped by recent playoffs

The Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies meet again in October. The National League East rivalry will now take center stage in the Wild Card Series, with Atlanta reaching the postseason after once again winning its division.

The Braves won the East Division for the seventh time in the last nine seasons, according to MLB. However, their dominance during the regular season has not guaranteed them a deep run in October: in 2022 and 2023, their runs ended in the Division Series—against the Phillies, no less—despite winning more than 100 games in both seasons.

That history makes this new matchup an opportunity for Atlanta to rewrite a recent narrative that has favored Philadelphia.

Sale will be Atlanta's ace

Atlanta will put the ball in the hands of Chris Sale, who enters the first game off an outstanding regular season.

The left-hander finished with a 2.16 ERA, the third-best mark in Major League Baseball. He also posted particularly strong results against Philadelphia: in his four starts against the Phillies, he posted a 2.08 ERA over 26 innings.

This will be his first playoff appearance since 2021. Sale already knows what it's like to pitch in high-stakes situations: in the 2018 World Series, while with the Boston Red Sox, he was used as a reliever in Game 6 and closed out the game by striking out all three batters he faced in the ninth inning.

His postseason record, however, shows less favorable numbers. In seven starts, he has a 7.24 ERA, and in four of those outings, he failed to complete five innings.

Luzardo will have a special mission

Philadelphia will turn to Jesús Luzardo, although the Venezuelan will take the mound after a period away from the rotation.

His last start came on September 7, when he pitched a complete game without allowing any runs and gave up just two hits—precisely against Atlanta, in Philadelphia. Since then, he has been recovering from inflammation in his left shoulder.

Luzardo made a brief appearance on Sunday, throwing four pitches in the eighth inning. As a result, his role in this game will differ from that of a traditional starter.

Rookie Andrew Painter is also among Philadelphia's options to pitch in the game.

Acuña is one of the offensive threats

One of Atlanta's main weapons will be Ronald Acuña Jr. The Venezuelan finished September with particularly impressive numbers against the Phillies: he posted an OPS of 1.377 in seven games against Philadelphia during the month.

Atlanta's collective performance, however, has not been as consistent down the stretch. In recent weeks, aside from Acuña, Drake Baldwin and Mauricio Dubón were the only Braves players with an OPS of at least .750 during the final month of the regular season.

Atlanta is projected to field a lineup with Baldwin as the designated hitter, Acuña in right field, and Matt Olson, Michael Harris II, Mauricio Dubón, Ozzie Albies, Mike Yastrzemski, Austin Riley, and Sean Murphy rounding out the order.

Philadelphia needs to get its offense going

The Phillies head into the series after a lackluster September at the plate.

Philadelphia finished the month with a .226 batting average, a .356 slugging percentage, and an OPS of .660—numbers that ranked them 29th in Major League Baseball in those categories. They also scored 3.71 runs per game, also ranking 29th.

The projected lineup will feature Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, and Bryce Harper in the top spots, followed by Alec Bohm, Bryson Stott, Edmundo Sosa, Bryan De La Cruz, Derek Hill, and JT Realmuto.

The relievers could decide the outcome

The state of the bullpens will be another key factor to watch.

Philadelphia has struggled with its relievers throughout the season and heads into October with Alex McFarlane, Jonathan Bowlan, and José Alvarado among the top options for the late innings, in addition to closer Jhoan Duran.

Atlanta has also received some important news in that department. Robert Suárez, who had appeared in only two games over the previous three months, regained confidence after his outings against Cincinnati and Miami last week.

The Braves hope to rely on Suárez alongside Raisel Iglesias, Dylan Lee, and Didier Fuentes to handle the late innings.

Arráez will not be with the Phillies

Philadelphia has a confirmed absence for the series. Luis Arráez was left off the wild-card roster after suffering a left ankle injury on September 25.

His spot will be filled by Otto Kemp. Bowlan, meanwhile, returned to the roster after recovering from a strained right calf that sidelined him for more than a week.

In Atlanta, Lane Thomas is expected to miss the series due to a left intercostal strain.