Phillies Clinch 2022 MLB Playoff Berth; 1st Trip to Postseason Since 2011

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The Philadelphia Phillies no longer own the distinction of having the longest playoff drought in the National League.

With a 3-0 victory over the Houston Astros on Monday, the Phillies clinched their first postseason berth since 2011.

Aaron Nola threw 6.2 perfect innings before allowing his first hit, and Kyle Schwarber hit two home runs to push his total to 46.

After leading Major League Baseball with 102 wins during the 2011 regular season, Philadelphia lost in the National League Division Series to the St. Louis Cardinals. It proceeded to finish .500 or worse in eight of the next nine seasons.

Only the Seattle Mariners had a longer playoff drought in MLB, but they also snapped their streak, reaching the postseason for the first time since 2001. The Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Angels are now tied for the most consecutive years without a postseason appearance (eight).

In 2021, the Phillies finished 82-80, 6.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves for the National League East title. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski spent aggressively in the offseason, bringing in Schwarber and Nick Castellanos to improve the lineup.

Even though Castellanos didn’t pan out (.265/.306/.392), Schwarber leads the NL with a career high in homers.

The division didn’t make things easy for the Phillies. The Braves and New York Mets have spent most of the season locked in a battle atop the standings. The Braves currently own a magic number of one with two days remaining in the season.

The Phillies were in a race with the Milwaukee Brewers for the NL’s final wild-card spot. Philadelphia made its task difficult with a rough September that included 10 losses in 13 games from Sept. 15-29.

But the Phils took three of four from the Washington Nationals over the weekend, while the Brewers lost three of four to the Miami Marlins.

And now Philadelphia will get its first taste of playoff baseball in 11 years.

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