Why Phillies No. 4 and No. 5 starters are 'X-Factors' in NL East postseason hunt originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Philadelphia Phillies have won seven games in a row entering play on Saturday, August 22, and there is some significant optimism about the team.
But to make not only a push for the postseason in general, but maybe even steal the National League East from the Atlanta Braves, they're going to need two players to really step up down the stretch.
Jim Bowden of The Athletic highlighted two players who are the Phillies' "X-Factors" this season. They are No. 4 and No. 5 starters Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter. The reason why is very simple: if they're good, this rotation might be unbeatable.
"If the Phillies are going to hold on to win a wild-card berth, they're going to have to win more games started by Nola and Painter," Bowden writes. "The Phillies are just 3-7 in Nola's last 10 starts and are 3-13 in Painter's last 16 starts. If they can just win half the games that duo starts, there is no doubt the Phillies can punch their ticket to the playoffs."
#starts #bowden #nola
The Philadelphia Phillies have won seven games in a row entering play on Saturday, August 22, and there is some significant optimism about the team.
But to make not only a push for the postseason in general, but maybe even steal the National League East from the Atlanta Braves, they're going to need two players to really step up down the stretch.
Jim Bowden of The Athletic highlighted two players who are the Phillies' "X-Factors" this season. They are No. 4 and No. 5 starters Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter. The reason why is very simple: if they're good, this rotation might be unbeatable.
"If the Phillies are going to hold on to win a wild-card berth, they're going to have to win more games started by Nola and Painter," Bowden writes. "The Phillies are just 3-7 in Nola's last 10 starts and are 3-13 in Painter's last 16 starts. If they can just win half the games that duo starts, there is no doubt the Phillies can punch their ticket to the playoffs."
#starts #bowden #nola
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