Jul 11, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) prepares to bat during the first inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports Bill Streicher
After the Phillies won for a fifth time in six games to open the season Thursday, J.T. Realmuto was asked if there will be any extra juice this weekend as the defending World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers visit Citizens Bank Park.
"I don't know, I heard they were unbeatable," Realmuto said jokingly.
The three-time All-Star then gave his actual answer.
"I don't think so, we want to win every game," Realmuto said. "Every game is important. Obviously, they're a great team over there, so we're excited for their talents."
Whether the Phillies have any added motivation this weekend, the likely sellout crowds at Citizens Bank Park will be louder against the Dodgers than they were against the lowly Colorado Rockies this week.
The Dodgers won the World Series last year, and are almost certainly a better team on paper in 2025. Even with Freddie Freeman landing on the injured list Thursday, the lineup still includes Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernández and Will Smith. Los Angeles added Japanese superstar Roki Sasaki to their starting rotation in the offseason, while bolstering their bullpen with the additions of Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates.
Shohei Ohtani aura is incredible man
Walks up to the plate, every single fan gets on their feet, first pitch and BAM, its gone
Ohtani was made for the bright lights of the LA Dodgers pic.twitter.com/Z4oysRPvIC
Los Angeles was off Thursday, but that was only after a walk-off home run by Ohtani improved their record to 8-0 Wednesday. As the Dodgers bring their undefeated record to Philly this weekend, here's three things I'll be watching.
Ohtani threw a bullpen last week, but he's still not close to ready for game action as a pitcher as he continues to recover from a second major elbow surgery. He's never pitched at Citizens Bank Park, and unless the Phillies meet the Dodgers in the postseason, that trend will continue for another year.
What the three-time MVP also has never done at Citizens Bank Park is homer. Granted, Ohtani spent the first six years of his career with the Angels, a team that doesn't visit Philadelphia a ton. He also has a .303 batting average in nine games at Citizens Bank Park, so it's not exactly like he's struggled against the Phillies. Still, Ohtani has zero home runs, four RBIs and a .774 OPS in nine career games in Philly — that's about as close as you can come to keeping him in check.
Red October in July
pic.twitter.com/5X4yAocosA
Last July — in one of the five wins the Phillies had in six games against the Dodgers during the 2024 season — Matt Strahm struck out Ohtani in a high-leverage situation. At the time, it felt like a preview of a matchup we'd see in the NLCS. But the Phillies were upset by the New York Mets in the NLDS, and never got a chance to face off with the Dodgers for the right to represent the NL in the World Series.
They can't undo their shortcomings last October in a series against the Dodgers in early April. But whether it's Strahm or someone else, it would be a good omen for a potential postseason matchup if the Phillies continue to bend but not break against Ohtani.
Then again — as Dodgers' play-by-play announcer Joe Davis said after Wednesday's walk-off home run — Ohtani is inevitable.
Two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell will not pitch for the Dodgers this weekend. Ditto for Phillies' ace Zack Wheeler, who continues to look as good as any starting pitcher in baseball.
Don't fret, there will still be three really good starting pitching matchups between the Phillies and Dodgers. Here are the probables for each game.
Friday: Yoshinobu Yamamoto vs. Jesús Luzardo
Saturday: Roki Sasaki vs. Aaron Nola
Sunday: Tyler Glasnow vs. Cristopher Sánchez
10 strikeouts for Yoshinobu Yamamoto is a new career high 👏 pic.twitter.com/T8tgWTvl50
Notably, the Phillies pursued both Yamamoto and Sasaki the past two offseasons. They made a presentation to Yamamoto and by all accounts, a lucrative offer. But he instead opted to sign a 12-year/$325 million deal with the Dodgers. Sasaki, meanwhile, chose not to meet with the Phillies this past winter, despite interest from Dave Dombrowski and company. Yamamoto has a 2.97 ERA across his first 20 MLB starts, which have spanned exactly 100 innings. Sasaki, meanwhile, has struggled in his first two MLB starts, walking nine batters and posting a 5.79 ERA over just 4 2/3 innings.
Glasnow has struggled to stay healthy in his career, but he was an All-Star last year and posted a 3.49 ERA and struck out 168 batters over 134 innings before right elbow tendinitis ended his season in mid-August.
For the Phillies, Luzardo and Sánchez both pitched well in their first starts of the season. Luzardo — who will be making his first home start as a Phillie Friday — struck out 11 batters over five innings in a win over the Washington Nationals last Saturday. Sánchez pitched the home opener Monday, limiting the Rockies to four hits and one earned run over 5 1/3 innings en route to a 6-1 win.
Nola, however, needs to rebound after giving up five earned runs over 5 1/3 innings pitched last Sunday against the Nationals in the lone loss of the season to this point. He struck out eight batters in that game, looking dazzling at times. But he ultimately gave up a pair of homers, something that's plagued him in recent years. The longest-tenured Phillie will have to try to get back on track against the best lineup in baseball.
One area where the Dodgers have a clear advantage over the Phillies is in their bullpen.
That will be particularly true this weekend, as uncertainty exists around the two top lefties in Rob Thomson's 'pen with Ohtani in town.
The guess here is that the aforementioned Strahm will be available Friday. But the Phillies have to be careful with him. While he escaped Wednesday's appearance against the Rockies unscathed, Strahm walked two batters and needed 30 pitches to get through the frame. Remember, he's still building up after left shoulder inflammation limited him in Spring Training.
It's a good bet that José Alvarado won't be available on Friday, and perhaps even on Saturday. He's pitched three out of the last four days and needed 35 pitches Thursday to pick up the sweep-clinching save against the Rockies.
"It's three out of four and it's 35 pitches," Thomson said of Alvarado after the win. "We're gonna have to take care of him now."
If there was ever a weekend for the Phillies to get length from their starters, this would be it. And beyond that, this weekend will be a test for the likes of Jordan Romano, Orion Kerkering, Tanner Banks and Joe Ross — among others — as the Phillies try to determine what exactly they have in their bullpen outside of Strahm and Alvarado.
Kirby Yates, Wicked Splitters. 🤢 pic.twitter.com/QSjrW1Spt7
The Dodgers aren't a team expecting to get seven innings out of their starters on most nights, so they've built a loaded bullpen. Not only did they re-sign Blake Treinen in the offseason, but they signed Scott and Yates, two of the best relievers that were available on the market.
The contrast in the talent in these two bullpens will be interesting to watch this weekend, and perhaps be an early gauge of how aggressive the Phillies need to be in improving the arm barn this summer.
