Playoff mailbag: How long can Jesús Luzardo go for Phillies in Game 1? Could bench bat play a role after months in minors?

ATLANTA — The Phillies arrived at Truist Park on Monday for a workout that was not promised when they woke up the morning prior. After an ugly final week of the regular season, they still needed to clinch on Sunday. Finally, they took care of business with a thrilling, pouring victory.

Now, they’re playoff-bound for the fifth year in a row. The Phillies will take the first plate appearance of the 2026 Major League Baseball postseason on Tuesday afternoon in Game 1 of the National League Wild Card Series versus a familiar opponent in the Braves.

“I love playing here,” Bryce Harper said. “This is one of my favorite parks to play in. I love the field. I love the setup of it, everything. I enjoy coming into Atlanta and playing. Obviously the crowd is in it. They love their team, and it’s just a lot of fun coming in here and playing.”

Atlanta won the NL East with 94 wins and beat the 88-win Phillies 9-4 in the season series. But as everyone saw in 2022 and 2023, the better team does not always come out on top in the playoffs. Philadelphia will have a huge challenge, but there will be an opportunity to pull off another upset in this rivalry.

“Everybody knows the numbers and what happened in the regular season,” Harper said. “It’s kind of been like that the last couple years. Once the postseason starts, it’s a whole different game. Just try to do the best we can and understand we’re a very good baseball team, and we’re ready to go.”

Before the start of Phillies-Braves in this best-of-three postseason series, Phillies Nation wanted to answer a few of your questions in a playoff mailbag:

Question from Andrew J McGill on Facebook: If Luzardo is going well, will he be yanked?

Many had similar questions after interim manager Don Mattingly announced that Jesús Luzardo would start — “I should say open,” Mattingly added — Game 1. The left-hander who dominated in the second half was shut down earlier this month, then returned from the 15-day injured list just in time to throw a scoreless, four-pitch inning out of the bullpen in Sunday’s clincher. Two days later, he’ll take the ball again.

But how long will he have it?

“I don’t think we really know what to expect,” Mattingly said.

The answer probably won’t come until Tuesday afternoon when the action goes on. But Luzardo’s workload will be a huge factor. There are two ways to look at it: On one hand, it could be dangerous to push Luzardo. If he runs out of steam, it could spiral quickly. It was a different injury and a different situation — this pitcher did not get a relief appearance in like Luzardo did — but Spencer Strider‘s outing in the 2022 NL Division Series comes to mind. The right-hander was cruising during his first start in three weeks until he wasn’t. Just like that, the bat was spiked.

On the other hand, Luzardo has been excellent in 2026 and seems ready to answer the call. Limiting him too much could be a waste, as long as he feels healthy and up for more than an inning or two. It might be tough to balance.

“I feel like this time of year,” catcher J.T. Realmuto said, “and I’m assuming Zeus would say the same: He’s a competitor, and he’s pitched a full season. I don’t think 10 days off is necessarily long enough to throw him out of whack. I had a lot of confidence in him coming in (Sunday), have confidence in him going into the postseason.”

Either way, the Phillies would probably be wise to have a reliever warm in case Luzardo begins to unravel at any point. Lefty Tim Mayza could be the guy to take on an early jam if needed.

Phillies announce pitching plan for wild card opener: ‘See where it goes’

Question from William Shreiner on Facebook: Who is batting 4th (in Game 1)?

The Phillies lost their cleanup hitter for the final weekend of the regular season and at least the Wild Card Series when Luis Arraez sprained his left ankle running to first base on Thursday night. He will not be on the roster for this first-round matchup against the Braves, Mattingly said Monday, meaning Philadelphia will have to look elsewhere in the No. 4 spot.

First baseman Alec Bohm is probably the best bet to hit fourth against left-handed ace Chris Sale in Game 1, as the Phillies seem set to load up on righty hitters. He’s batted there a lot for the club over the years, and he had a .779 OPS in September. While Bryson Stott went 3-for-3 with two doubles as the cleanup man in Sunday’s regular-season finale and could be a candidate for that spot in the order later in the series, Bohm and his .816 OPS versus lefties this year would make more sense for the first game.

Don Mattingly explains roster decisions as Phillies prepare for Wild Card Series without cleanup hitter Luis Arraez

Question from SixersAdam on X: If Brandon Marsh or Justin Crawford has to face a lefty in a big spot, should Otto Kemp pinch-hit?

Mattingly wouldn’t completely reveal his lineup plans on Monday since he hadn’t spoken to his players, but he tipped his hand ahead of Game 1. “It’s pretty easy to project,” he said. That sounds like righties Edmundo Sosa, Derek Hill and Bryan De La Cruz will be in there to face Sale.

That will leave outfielders Brandon Marsh and Justin Crawford, infielder/outfielder Otto Kemp, who will replace Arraez on the roster, and catchers Garrett Stubbs and Rafael Marchán on the bench for Tuesday. Marsh and Crawford would figure to be candidates to pinch-hit if one of Sosa, Hill or De La Cruz comes up with a right-handed reliever on the mound (although Mattingly has expressed his comfort with De La Cruz in right-on-right opportunities).

If the Phillies go that route, they’d have to make another decision if the Braves were to insert a left-handed reliever later in the game with Marsh or Crawford due up. Kemp has not taken a big-league at-bat in over four months. He struggled in two brief opportunities to seize a short-side platoon role, then spent the rest of the year in the minor leagues, where he hit .227 with a .726 OPS. But if he’s going to be on the club for the Wild Card Series, it might be worth using Kemp in that specific scenario.

Marsh had a .613 OPS against lefties this season. Crawford’s was only .603. Kemp has not shown at any point in 2026 that he’d be a reliable major-league option, especially in a big spot, but he was a player the Phillies liked heading into the year. It would probably be worth playing the splits, even if none of the choices would be ideal.