Phillies close gap on Brewers in the race for NL’s top seed with 8 games remaining

The Phillies are heating up at the perfect time, and with every win, the door to the top seed in the National League opens a little wider.

Friday night in Arizona, they handled business with an 8-2 win over the Diamondbacks while the Brewers face-planted in St. Louis.

Just like that, the Phillies shaved the gap to two games in the chase for the No. 1 seed.

This one had all the ingredients of a team locked in for October.

The D-backs jumped out early with a 2-0 lead, but the Phillies didn’t blink. Alec Bohm, fresh off the injured list, got Philly on the board with an RBI double in the second. Harrison Bader tied it up in the fifth with a solo blast, Weston Wilson pushed them ahead in the sixth, and then the offense really opened it up late.

Phillies Roll Past D-Backs 8-2: Bohm returns, Casty clutches up, Buehler shoves

Nick Castellanos sent a two-run bomb into the bullpen in the eighth, Bohm tacked on more insurance in the ninth, and the Phillies finished the night pouring on runs while Arizona’s playoff hopes kept sinking.

The media will stop at nothing to create their own Nick Castellanos narratives

The timing couldn’t be better. The Brewers, who hold the tiebreaker over Philly after taking the season series 4-2, dropped a 7-1 game to the Cardinals.

That means the Phillies have to actually finish ahead of Milwaukee in the standings, not just tie them, to steal the top spot.

With eight games left for both teams, the magic number is four.

Philly needs to win four more games than Milwaukee the rest of the way to get the top seed in the National League. To secure a first round bye, that number is down to three.

It’s not impossible. The Phillies finish with the Diamondbacks, Marlins, and Twins, while the Brewers still have to grind through the Padres and finish with the Reds. If the Phils sweep Arizona this weekend while the Brewers get swept in St. Louis, the race is dead even with six games left.

The margin for error is razor thin, but the path is there.

The No. 1 seed in the NL means home-field advantage through the World Series. No team in the American League has even cracked 90 wins yet. If the Phillies pass Milwaukee, Citizens Bank Park would be the October epicenter of baseball.

Two games back, eight left, and all the momentum in the world. The fight for the top seed is officially on.

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