Phillies’ 10-day test vs Dodgers and Padres begins Monday

Phillies’ pivotal – Monday kicks off a 10-day stretch that forces the Phillies to measure themselves against two National League West favorites. It’s not just another schedule run—this is where recent momentum gets tested by Petco Park, Dodger Stadium, and a stack of storylines t

Monday starts a tense, high-stakes stretch for the Phillies—one that doesn’t let them look away from the National League’s most serious threats. For 10 days, they exclusively play the Padres and Dodgers, two of the top contenders in the NL.

The last time the Phillies faced a run like this, it ended badly. About a month ago, they dropped 10 straight games to the Braves and Cubs. Manager Rob Thomson was fired, and just a few days later, Don Mattingly took over.

A lot has changed since then. The Phillies are 17-8 since Mattingly. but the path hasn’t been perfectly smooth—after winning each of their first six series under him. they’ve now dropped two straight series. Starting Monday in San Diego. the next week and a half could sharpen the answer to one question: where exactly do the Phillies belong?.

Here are 10 storylines that shape what happens next.

1) How do the Phillies stack up?
Yes, the Phillies turned their season around after the 9-19 start that triggered the managerial change. Under interim manager Don Mattingly, they’re 17-8. Still, the schedule doesn’t offer a gentle ramp.

They’ve dropped two straight series after winning each of their first six with Mattingly at the helm. Those first six series came against the Giants (22-31), Marlins (25-29), A’s (27-26), Rockies (20-34), Red Sox (22-30), and Pirates (27-26).

The next three series—against the Padres (31-21) and Dodgers (33-20)—could be more indicative of how the Phillies match up in the NL.

2) Sánchez goes for history
Cristopher Sánchez will take the mound on Wednesday at Petco Park needing just four scoreless innings to surpass Grover Alexander for the longest scoreless streak by a Phillies pitcher since at least 1893, when the mound moved to its current distance.

Sánchez has put together four consecutive scoreless outings of at least seven innings. He has gone 37 2/3 consecutive innings without allowing a run. Alexander’s franchise record is 41 innings.

There’s a specific catch in how the streak is measured. Sánchez needs to complete four innings to surpass Alexander. If he gives up a run with two outs in the fourth, he would be credited with only three scoreless innings as it pertains to his scoreless streak—not 3 2/3.

3) What does Schwarber have in store for Petco?
Kyle Schwarber’s at-bats at Petco Park are already appointment-viewing material. He crushed a 465-foot homer on Sept. 6, 2023, tied for the fourth-longest in the history of the park.

Including the postseason, Schwarber has 20 home runs in 45 starts against the Padres. That’s a 72-homer pace over 162 games.

4) Can offense heat up out west?
The Phillies’ offense is still searching for consistency across the lineup. This season, they’ve been held to one run or fewer 13 times. Only the Mets (15 times) and Giants (14) have done so more often.

Trea Turner, who hit .304 to win the NL batting title last season, is hitting .225 with a .619 OPS. J.T. Realmuto is hitting .219 with a .572 OPS. Adolis García is hitting .203.

Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott have started to turn things around after slow starts, but the Phillies need more of the lineup to keep following that trend.

5) Sho Time: What will Ohtani do vs. Phillies?
The Phillies may have to adjust for what they’re not getting. It looks as if Shohei Ohtani the pitcher will be missing from this stretch, meaning they’ll deal only with Shohei Ohtani the hitter.

Ohtani has a 0.73 ERA in eight starts this season and is scheduled to pitch on Wednesday against the Rockies before the Phillies arrive for the weekend showdown.

As a hitter, Ohtani’s start has been slower than his usual standards. After averaging 51 homers and posting a 1.037 OPS over the past three seasons, Ohtani entered Monday with just eight home runs and an .875 OPS.

The Phillies are one of the few teams to have mostly held him in check. Ohtani is a career .209 hitter with a .663 OPS in 22 games vs. Philadelphia. In last year’s NLDS, he went just 1-for-18 (.056) with nine strikeouts.

6) Good spot for Nola to get on track
Aaron Nola’s struggles have been well established. He has a 6.04 ERA in 10 starts this season, and a 6.02 ERA in 27 outings dating to the start of last season. That places him 121st out of 123 pitchers with at least 25 starts during that span.

What’s different in 2026 is that Nola has thrown a pretty effective curveball so far. The issue is his four-seam fastball, which has been the single-worst pitch across the Majors according to Baseball Savant’s Run Value metric.

The next two starts are lined up against the Padres. San Diego entered Monday with the second-worst team OPS in the Majors. More importantly for Nola’s fastball problem, the Padres are hitting .227 against four-seam fastballs as a team.

7) Castellanos reunion
Nick Castellanos spent four seasons with the Phillies with results that swung between big moments and bigger questions. He had huge postseason moments. including historic back-to-back two-homer games and significant catches. but he also posted a .732 OPS and struggled defensively. There was also that infamous dugout exchange with then-manager Rob Thomson last season.

The Phillies released him in March ahead of what would have been the final year of the five-year. $100 million contract he signed prior to the 2022 season. Castellanos ultimately landed with the Padres. where he’s being paid the league minimum—around $780. 000—while the Phillies cover almost all of the $20 million he is owed this season.

In a part-time role with San Diego, he entered Monday hitting .190 with a .577 OPS.

8) NLDS rematch
After their three-game set in San Diego, the Phillies will travel a hundred miles north and return to Dodger Stadium—the same place where their 2025 season ended in devastating fashion last October.

It will be the first trip back to Los Angeles for the Phillies since Orion Kerkering’s errant throw in Game 4 of the NLDS resulted in a walk-off series-clinching win for the Dodgers.

That dramatic ending may have overshadowed how close the series was. The Phillies let a late lead slip away in Game 1, dropped a one-run decision in Game 2, and rolled to a six-run victory in Game 3 before the 11-inning loss in Game 4.

9) Painter takes on Dodgers’ potent lineup
Andrew Painter appears to be finding his footing after a rocky start. Over his past three starts, he has a 2.60 ERA. Earlier, he struggled to a 6.89 ERA through his first seven outings.

Saturday night brings another test. Painter is scheduled to face a Dodgers offense that leads the Majors with a .771 team OPS.

10) Crawford back in LA
Justin Crawford will return to Los Angeles. the scene where he first met the Dodgers manager who is now tied to his current moment. The 22-year-old Crawford recalled meeting Don Mattingly—then the Dodgers’ manager—about 14 years ago after his dad. Carl. was traded from the Red Sox to the Dodgers in August 2012.

Carl Crawford spent the final four seasons of his 15-year career playing in Los Angeles.

The Phillies don’t have the luxury of turning these storylines into background noise. In this 10-day stretch. the pitching milestones. the Petco power swing. the lineup’s daily questions. and the bruising memories of an NLDS ending all run into the same reality: the Padres and Dodgers will determine what the turnaround really means.

Phillies Padres Dodgers Don Mattingly Rob Thomson Cristopher Sánchez Grover Alexander Kyle Schwarber Petco Park Trea Turner J.T. Realmuto Aaron Nola Shohei Ohtani Nick Castellanos Andrew Painter Justin Crawford Orion Kerkering NLDS Game 4