Image: Photo of Citizens Bank Park (Photo by Mick Kirchman on Unsplash)
The Philadelphia Phillies’ season ended Wednesday night, Oct. 9, after a 4–1 loss against the New York Mets. For the first time ever, the division rivals met for a potential five-game series to compete in the National League Division Series (NLDS). The first to win three games would move on to the National League Championship Series (NLCS).
This was the Phillies’ first appearance in the 2024 postseason as they were given a first-round goodbye with the second-best record in the regular season. The Mets, however, took on the Milwaukee Brewers in the first round — better known as the Wildcard round — of the playoffs. The Mets defeated the Brewers 2–1 in the series, sending them to Philadelphia.
Game 1 of the NLDS took place on Saturday, Oct. 5 at home in Citizens Bank Park. Phillies fans showed up big time, loud and ready to go to war for their team. Phillies starting pitcher, Zack Wheeler, had a fantastic game as he only let up one hit in seven innings. In 111 pitches, Wheeler struck out nine and walked four in his seven innings, recording 30 swings and misses in the game. The Phillies led 1–0 into the eighth inning when Zack Wheeler was replaced by relief pitcher Jeff Hoffman. Unfortunately, that’s when things took a turn for Philadelphia. The Mets scored five runs off five hits in the inning, giving them a 5–1 lead in the eighth. The Phillies were unable to come back in the ninth and lost Game 1 6–2. This gave the Mets a 1–0 lead in the series.
Game 2 occurred 24 hours later, again at Citizens Bank Park. Fans showed up once again, determined to cheer on their team to tie the series. Fortunately, that’s just what they did. With starting pitcher Cristopher Sanchez on the mound, a two-run home run gave the Mets an early lead. The Mets extended their lead to 3–0 in the sixth with a solo home run from Pete Alonso. Following the second Mets home run, Phillies fans began to lose hope. The Bank grew quiet as everyone in the stands felt defeated. The silence didn’t last very long.
Bryce Harper came up to the plate in the bottom of the sixth with two outs and Trea Turner on first. With the count 2–2, Harper swung at a fly ball giving him his first home run of the postseason. Two pitches later, Nick Castellanos homered on a fly ball to left center field. This tied the game 3–3. A few runs and innings later, The Mets and Phillies were tied 6–6 going into the bottom of the ninth inning. With two on base and two outs, Castellanos was able to hit a sharp line drive to left field giving the Phillies the win. The series was tied 1–1 as both teams were ready to head to New York.
The Mets took another early lead in Game 3 when starting pitcher Aaron Nola took the mound. The score became 6–0 by the seventh inning and the Phillies ended up losing 7–2. The Mets led the series 2–1 and one more win would send them to the NLCS.
The Phillies stayed hopeful for Game 4. They believed they could tie the series 2–2 and force Game 5, which would take place back home in Philadelphia.
The game stayed 0–0 up until the fourth inning, when Bryce Harper was able to reach home plate due to a fielding error by the Mets. The Phillies had the lead until the sixth inning when Francisco Lindor, the Met’s shortstop, hit a grand slam, giving them a 4–1 lead. The Mets took Game 4, giving them the NLDS win and eliminating Philadelphia in the process.
While the Phillies season has come to an end, it won’t be long before they’re back in Clearwater, Florida for spring training. Shortly afterwardafterward, they’ll return to Philadelphia with a loyal fanbase to greet them.
Sophie Stair is a second-year English major with a minor in Journalism.