Phillies Inching Closer to the Playoffs
Thanks to NL East foe Miami taking 3 of 4 in Milwaukee this weekend, the Phillies magic number for the final wild card spot is down to one game. Philadelphia needs one win this week in Houston in the final series of the regular season, a tough task against the top seed in the A.L. playoffs.
The one thing Philadelphia has going in the Phillies vs Astros Monday matchup is that Houston doesn’t need wins here. The Astros are locked into the first round playoff bye and will have home field advantage until at least the World Series. Houston still took two of three from the playoff-bound Rays over the weekend though and have won 5 of their last 7 overall.
The Phillies took 3 of 4 against Washington over the weekend but that’s a Nationals team ready for this season to be over with. Prior to that Philadelphia had dropped 5 in a row and they were just 11-14 in September. Aaron Nola (10-13, 3.36 ERA) goes for Philadelphia on Monday looking for consistency. In two of his five starts last month he allowed a combined 8 runs, but gave up just one run total in his other three.
Lance McCullers (4-1, 2.38 ERA) gets his final tune-up for the postseason in somewhat of an audition to be on the playoff roster. McCullers missed most of the season with a right forearm injury and was scratched from his last start with an illness. Houston did win all four of his other starts in September however.
| Offshore Sportsbook | Moneyline | Total | Run Line |
|---|---|---|---|
| BetOnline | Phillies (+120)| Astros (-130) | 7 | Phillies +1.5 (-184) | Astros -1.5 (+164) |
| Bovada | Phillies (+108)| Astros (-130) | 7.5 | Phillies +1.5 (-195) | Astros -1.5 (+165) |
| BetUS | Phillies (+115)| Astros (-125) | 7 | Phillies +1.5 (-200) | Astros -1.5 (+170) |
| SportsBetting.ag | Phillies (+120)| Astros (-130) | 7 | Phillies +1.5 (-184) | Astros -1.5 (+164) |
| Pinnacle | Phillies (+120)| Astros (-130) | 7.5 | Phillies +1.5 (-182) | Astros -1.5 (+163) |
| MyBookie | Phillies (+105)| Astros (-128) | 7.5 | Phillies +1.5 (-192) | Astros -1.5 (+154) |
Phillies vs Astros Monday Summary
The Phillies vs Astros Monday meeting is an interesting one with Philadelphia still needing one more victory to get into the postseason while these last three games are just tune-ups for Houston. Philadelphia wasn’t playing well before their weekend series against Washington which puts the value on the home team here.
