The Phillies are rolling into September with real momentum, and the next month is going to lean heavily on three arms that can shape how far this team goes.
Philadelphia won 21 games in August, a run that pushed it firmly into the National League playoff mix. The club has kept pressure on the Atlanta Braves in the NL East and moved into a tie with the Chicago Cubs for the No.
1 Wild Card spot. If the Phillies are going to keep climbing, they need their pitching to keep carrying the load.
One of the biggest reasons for the late push has been the turnaround in the back end of the rotation. For most of the year, the No. 5 spot was a problem area. Lately, though, Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter have helped flip that script.
Nola’s season looked rough not long ago, with his ERA sitting at a season-worst 6.04 on June 29. Entering September, that number has dropped to 4.93, which is the first time it has been below 5.00 since April 14, when he made his third start of the season. Painter has made a similar climb after being optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley; his ERA was 7.06 at that point and now stands at 5.95.
That matters because both pitchers are giving Philadelphia a chance to win every time they take the mound. With the standings tightening, those kinds of starts can make a real difference.
The bullpen has also become a major part of the conversation, especially with the offense still prone to uneven stretches. That puts even more weight on Jhoan Duran, who has emerged as one of the top closers in baseball.
Duran has been lights out in 2026, and the Phillies need that to keep going if they want to make noise down the stretch. He has 29 saves, a 1.61 ERA and 3.0 bWAR. With some shakiness in the bridge to get to him, his job becomes even more critical.
At the top of the staff, Zack Wheeler remains the key to making the rotation a true weapon again. He offered a reminder of that in his last start, when he shut down the Los Angeles Angels to help the Phillies complete a sweep.
That outing came after a rough stretch, one that was described as one of the worst of his career. Wheeler still has work to do, but that start was a step in the right direction. If he can build on it, Philadelphia could head into the playoffs with a formidable trio alongside Cristopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo.
In Other News...
Phillies May Have A Luis Arraez Problem They Didn't Expect
Since the trade deadline, the Phillies have looked like the kind of club that can justify a bold move in the middle of a pennant race, and Luis Arraez has been a big reason why. Philadelphia has played like the best team in baseball over that stretch, with Arraez settling in as a steady bat and showing improved defense while batting behind Bryce Harper, a spot that has helped deepen the lineup and make the offense harder to navigate.
The complication for the Phillies may be less about what Arraez has done on the field than what it could mean next. His production has only boosted his value as he heads toward free agency, and the strong finish has reportedly put him in position to draw serious attention this winter. For a team that just found a rhythm with him in the lineup, the most important question may be whether that fit lasts beyond this season. [Read more 🡒]
Phillies Just Turned Gage Wood Into A Frustrating September Debate
Gage Wood spent his first full professional season doing enough to keep his name in the conversation, working his way through High-A and Double-A while giving the Phillies a reason to think about what comes next. The 2025 first-round pick logged 86 innings over 24 starts, a solid enough line to suggest the organization has a real arm on its hands, even if the production has been uneven at times.
When September arrived, though, the Phillies went in a different direction. Instead of giving Wood a look with the expanded roster, they added right-hander Grant Holman, a more experienced but lower-ceiling arm for the stretch run, which leaves Wood stuck in the awkward space prospect pitchers often find themselves in at this stage. He has made progress, but for now the path to Philadelphia remains a little more frustrating than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Phillies Are Finally Peaking At The Exact Time Fans Hoped
August ended with the Phillies playing the kind of baseball that can change the mood of a clubhouse and a city at the same time. A 21-7 month tied for the 10th-best winning percentage in team history, and it came with a run of dominance the franchise has not seen since August 1991, when Philadelphia last swept four series of three games or more in a single month. It was the sort of stretch built on a deep mix of pitching and timely production, with Cristopher Snchez, Andrew Painter, Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler and Bryson Stott all playing notable roles.
The timing matters just as much as the numbers. Philadelphia did not just catch fire in a random patch of the schedule, it did so after the trade deadline reshaped the roster and gave the club more ways to keep winning when the games start tightening up. For a fan base that has been waiting for the group to hit its stride, this is the kind of late-summer surge that can make the rest of the season feel very different, even if the biggest questions are still ahead. [Read more 🡒]