Philadelphia and Atlanta meet Thursday in a winner-take-all matchup to decide who plays the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS.
The Philadelphia Phillies visit the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on Thursday night for a decisive Game 3 in their National League Wild Card Series, with the winner advancing to face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the divisional round.
It’s the only series in the wild-card round that didn’t end in a sweep. The Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, and San Diego Padres each took their opening round matchups in two games, leaving Philadelphia and Atlanta to play the lone winner-take-all contest.
How the series was tied
Atlanta took Game 1 on Sept. 29 after Austin Riley hit a three-run home run off Philadelphia’s closer in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Philadelphia stayed alive Wednesday with a 4-3 victory in 10 innings. Starting pitchers Cristopher Sánchez and Tyler Mahle traded runs in the first inning before Atlanta built a 3-1 lead in the seventh. Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth inning to tie the game, and Alec Bohm hit a solo homer in the 10th inning to secure the win.
The pitching plans
Aaron Nola gets the start for Philadelphia on Thursday. During the regular season, Nola went 7-12 with a 4.67 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. He recorded a 3.84 ERA in road games, and he allowed 20 earned runs across 61.1 innings during August and September. In three regular-season starts against Atlanta, Nola gave up nine earned runs over 18 innings. The Phillies also have starters Zack Wheeler and Jesús Luzardo available in relief.
Atlanta had not announced a starting pitcher ahead of the matchup and is expected to rely heavily on its bullpen. The Braves ranked sixth in bullpen ERA during the regular season at 3.58, though closer Raisel Iglesias pitched in each of the first two games.
