The Phillies have lost Zach Wheeler for the rest of the season. Their number 1 ace will not be able to take the mound to help lead them to a World Series. That means the Phillies postseason rotation is going to look a lot different from years past.
Typically the rotation would have Wheeler for game 1, Nola for game 2, and Ranger for a game 3. Well, with Wheeler out and Nola coming back from injury and just not looking like his old self(Other than his outing vs the Mets the other day) who is going to get the nod for games 1 and 2 of the potential NLDS series?
Christopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo have been the Phillies 2nd and 3rd best pitchers this season. Sanchez you could even argue has almost pitched better than Zach Wheeler, I mean he has been an absolute stud this season.
Luzardo in his first year with the Phillies has been no slouch either. For most of the season he has been very reliable and gives the Phillies a chance to win every time he’s on the mound. Sure, he has had some bad outings but I still trust him over Aaron Nola at this point.
So, let’s say the NLDS starts tomorrow and the Phillies are going up against either the New York Mets in a rematch from last year or possibly the defending World Series Champion LA Dodgers.
As of this blog, my game 1 starter without hesitation is Christopher Sanchez. In his 28 appearances Sanchez has posted a 12-5 record with a 2.60 ERA and has looked dialed in for almost everyone of his starts. In the playoffs every pitch matters and without Wheeler, I trust Sanchez to go up against the best of the best for whoever they are facing.
In game 2 I’m going with Jesus Luzado. His ERA is a little higher than we would like it to be at 4.01 in 29 games. He does have a solid W/L record with 13 wins and 6 losses. Sure, those numbers don’t matter really come October but the way Luzardo has pitched especially as of late in an important game of the series I trust him to get the job done.
Game 3 is where it gets a little tricky. Ranger Suarez has proven in the postseason he is just as calm, cool, and collective like he is in the regular season. On the other hand Aaron Nola was once the guy for the Phillies when they needed him. A game 3 in a series is a deciding game, whether it’s going for a sweep, trying to take a series lead, or trying to hold off elimination. Based on this year and the way they both have pitched, for a game 3 I want Ranger Suarez on the mound. Ranger is always coming up clutch when the Phillies need him and that’s who I want in a pivotal game 3.
Where does that leave Aaron Nola? Honestly, I’m not really sure because I doubt they have him come out of the bullpen. I think Topper would give Nola the ball for a game 3 over Ranger simply because he feels more comfortable with Ranger coming out of the bullpen.
On top of that, the Phillies still have Taijun Walker who has pitched well recently and could always come in and be a long reliever if Nola were to struggle. Keep in mind the Phillies have also added Walker Buehler who will also be able to pitch multiple innings in a reliever role.
I think the games 1 and 2 starters are locked in with Sanchez and Luzardo. Game 3 is where Rob Thomson is going to have to make a hard decision. It’s great that the Phillies have options for that scenario but man does it suck not being able to have your number 1 guy for a very important postseason run.
The baseball gods are really testing the Phillies with all these recent injuries but not matter what, whatever team has to come into Philadelphia in October is in for 4 hours of hell.
-Walsh
The Philly Phan Cave 
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