SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 22: Manager Walt Weiss #22 of the Atlanta Braves looks on from the dugout before the game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on June 22, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
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The Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves are adding another chapter to one of the National League’s most familiar recent postseason rivalries, this time with the stakes compressed into a best-of-three Wild Card Series.
Philadelphia enters the matchup needing to get creative with its pitching after using franchise ace Zack Wheeler to secure a playoff berth in the regular-season finale and manager Don Mattingly indicated that recently injured starter Jesus Luzardo would open the game instead.
“The Phillies planned to have Zack Wheeler start Game 1 against Braves ace Chris Sale. But they needed him Sunday in a must-win regular-season finale,” The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber reported. “Maybe Luzardo will tap into postseason adrenaline and last six innings. Maybe he’ll go once through the Braves’ order.”
Mattingly clarified specifically that Luzardo would “open” the game rather than start in the traditional sense, as he’s going to be cautious about reaggravating his injury. But that terminology didn’t seem to convince Braves manager Walt Weiss, who offered a clear two-word response on Mattingly’s move.
“Asked Braves manager Walt Weiss if he is skeptical of Luzardo being just an opener,” Destiny Lugardo of Phillies Nation reported just before Game 1 of the series. “’Very skeptical,’” he said with a laugh.”
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Luzardo enters the postseason with an impressive resume despite the unusual circumstances surrounding his availability. He posted a 2.86 ERA with 221 strikeouts over 179⅔ innings during the regular season and recently pitched a complete-game shutout against the Braves.
But the left-hander has been limited recently because of an inflamed shoulder, making Philadelphia’s decision to limit him as an opener only understandable as it attempts to navigate a difficult pitching situation.
But Weiss won’t be counting on Mattingly taking Luzardo out if he is pitching well.
“I didn’t put a whole lot of stock into that,” Weiss added, per Lugardo. “I’m sure the game will dictate how deep he goes.”
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The Braves finished the regular season 94-68 and won the NL East by six games over Philadelphia, which finished 88-74. Atlanta also won nine of the teams’ 13 regular-season meetings.
And the Braves enter this latest playoff series with home-field advantage and Sale on the mound, while the Phillies are attempting to overcome the pitching complications created by their late-season push for a playoff berth.
That makes Luzardo’s role one of the most intriguing elements of Game 1. Though Weiss isn’t taking Mattingly’s stated plan at face value.
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