Regular season baseball is different from postseason baseball, as everyone knows. And, as everyone also knows, timely hitting and bat-missing bullpens become more important in short series against quality opponents.
Sure, starting pitching is important, too, but more so in the regular season, where a team must navigate playing virtually every day over a six-month, 162-game slog. That’s why the Phils’ most recent homestand, in which they went 5-1 against two quality opponents, was noteworthy.
After losing 10 of 11, the Phillies took two of three from the Cubs, then swept the Blue Jays thanks to outstanding starting pitching.