Philadelphia's got its own bullpen headaches — Brad Keller is done for the year with a torn UCL and Tanner Banks just landed on the IL — but right now none of it is slowing the Phillies down. Whatever the number says at Citizens Bank Park, the vibes are all pointing one direction.
The bigger story in Philly isn't the rotation, it's the dugout. Don Mattingly took over as interim manager after Rob Thomson got fired following a 9-19 start, and since then the Phillies have looked like a different team. That the GM calling the shots is Mattingly's own son only adds to how strange and, so far, successful this arrangement has been.
Toronto's split with Houston kept them treading water, but a loss to the Cubs right before this series is the more relevant data point walking into Philadelphia. The Blue Jays still have thump in the lineup, but between the walking-wounded list and a bullpen that's been among the most overworked in baseball, there isn't much margin for error against a lineup that's clicking.
Scherzer's season has been a rough one to watch — forearm trouble, back spasms, a thumb issue, and an ERA that's ballooned into the high 7s. Nola's numbers aren't much prettier at 5.55, but he's at least been trending the right way his last time out. Neither guy is the ace either franchise remembers, which puts even more weight on which bullpen holds up and which lineup cashes in first.