Phillies And Brewers Face Playoff Style Matchup

Phillies vs. Brewers, 7:40 ET

I don't know if you heard, but Backyard Sports is coming back. There doesn't seem to be a date for this, but I couldn't be more excited about the return of this series. When I was a kid, this was easily one of the coolest games around. They had all of the big four sports, and for those of you who never played, it was a bunch of little "neighborhood" kids and then professional players depicted as kids. I'm looking forward to it coming back. They don't even need to really change anything; they just need to add current players. I have to tell you, outside of sports betting, this is the most exciting thing around baseball I've had all year. Can't wait. Two teams that will certainly have some fun players added to this game will be the Phillies and Brewers and they face off today.

Keeping with Backyard Baseball, I truly hope they put Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper in the game. Schwarber would be an awesome player who basically would do the same as in real life - hit bombs or strike out. Bryce Harper could be fun just because he's one of the faces of the game. There are, of course, other options that could be added - Trea Turner, Zack Wheeler, Alec Bohm, or even JT Realmuto. With a team that has 90 wins, you know there are a ton of options and talented players to choose from. The Phillies are the best team in baseball, at least from a record standpoint, and could lock up the #1 seed in the NL if they play very well here, but they almost would certainly get the #2 seed at worst if they can win the series against the Brewers. Tonight they send out the aforementioned Wheeler to the hill. Wheeler has been one of the best pitchers in baseball this season and brings a 15-6 record with a 2.60 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP. His numbers, including 199 strikeouts, are all fifth or better in the Majors. He could be the owner of a Cy Young award after this season. He is at eight straight quality starts and I think he can get another one here. He faced the Brewers earlier in the season and went seven innings allowing five hits, one earned run, three walks, and struck out seven hitters.

Aug 8, 2024; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Frankie Montas (47) pitches against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The Brewers don't have quite as many options for Backyard Baseball, but there are a few that you could consider. Of course there is a former MVP, Christian Yelich who put together his best season in a few years. He is out for the season, but the team hasn't really slowed down without him. Willy Adames could be another consideration and he has put together a great campaign. I just recently heard that he has tied for the most 3-run homers in a season of all time. Even if they don't have a ton of Backyard Baseball candidates, they have a ton of good players who collectively work well together. Frankie Montas came over to the Brewers via trade around the deadline. He's been okay for them overall, but has settled in nicely this month, posting back-to-back quality starts. He is hard to predict, unfortunately. His most recent start, he went six innings and allowed just two hits. In the middle of August, he went seven innings and allowed just one hit. No runs allowed in either of those two starts. In between those two starts, he went a total of 18 innings and allowed 11 earned runs, not terrible, but not ideal either. He faced the Phillies once when he was with the Reds and allowed one earned run over 5.2 innings. 

This game is pretty important as far as playoff seeding. I won't say this is the most important thing in the world, both teams are still going to make it. It really just depends on which path they end up on. Wheeler will almost always give the Phillies a leg up on the competition. Montas is not as good of a pitcher, but he has done better lately. I think the best play here is to take the under 7.5 in this one. By the way, Pablo Sanchez will still be the best no matter who they put in the new version of Backyard Baseball.

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