Here's how Brewers, Phillies can clinch a playoff spot today
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Someone will pop champagne on Wednesday in Milwaukee. It could be the Brewers. It could be the Phillies. It could even be both.
Huh? Let us explain.
With the Phillies and Brewers set to square off in the finale of their three-game set tonight at 7:40 p.m. ET/6:40 CT on MLB Network, both clubhouses will be ready to celebrate a ticket punched for October, depending on how things shake out there and elsewhere.
The Brewers hold a 10-game lead over the Cubs in the NL Central and have a magic number of one, so a Cubs loss to the A's this afternoon gives Milwaukee the division title. But if the Cubs win and the Phillies come out on top, Philadelphia clinches a playoff berth and Milwaukee will have to delay its celebration for at least another day. The Phillies can also clinch with a loss by the Braves in Cincinnati and a loss by the Mets at home against the Nationals.
How is Philadelphia able to clinch? A Phillies win gets them to 92 for the season. Now, if the Braves win out and get to 92 victories, they would have to beat the Mets three times, which give New York a maximum win total of 91. Two of the three teams make the playoffs, therefore if the Phillies win, they've clinched a spot.
Both teams' postseason berths are a formality at this point, as the Brewers and Phillies have held comfortable leads in their divisions for a while now. But the goal is to get as high of a seed as possible and earn a first-round bye. And on that point, the Phillies have the edge.
With their 5-1 win over the Brewers on Tuesday, the Phillies clinched the season series over Milwaukee and own the tiebreaker for playoff seeding, which would guarantee them a bye if both teams finish with identical regular-season records. It also gave the Phillies home-field advantage should they meet the Brewers in the NL Championship Series.
Still, tonight's showdown should be a good one. Freddy Peralta (11-8, 3.75 ERA) takes the mound for the Brewers, while Aaron Nola (12-8, 3.62 ERA) toes the rubber for the Phillies.
No matter who wins, the bubbly will flow.