Rolled-up tarps line the lockers throughout the Phillies’ clubhouse, each held together by a black zip tie.
That’s all that’s keeping them closed.
If only the Phillies’ path to the postseason were as simple as snipping one of those ties.
Instead, they’re making their lives increasingly difficult.
On Friday, they welcomed the Tampa Bay Rays to town. Tampa Bay had already clinched the top seed in the American League, while Philadelphia was still trying to secure its fifth consecutive postseason berth.
Again, the Phillies got a strong pitching performance from left-handed ace Cristopher Sánchez. Again, the offense was nowhere to be found in their 2-0 loss at Citizens Bank Park.
The lineup looks almost unrecognizable compared with the one that carried Philadelphia through August. And these struggles have come at precisely the time the Phillies have needed to take care of their own business.
They’ve had several opportunities to secure their spot in October.
They just haven’t been able to finish the job.
Friday’s matchup offered a particularly striking example of how much things have changed.
The Phillies faced Freddy Peralta, whom the Rays acquired from the New York Mets at the August trade deadline. Philadelphia had seen him once before this season, on June 20 at Citizens Bank Park.
Remember Bryce Harper hitting for the cycle?
Kyle Schwarber hitting three home runs?
The Phillies tagging Peralta for a career-high 10 runs in just 2 2/3 innings?
Yeah, that one.
Peralta has since found his stride with Tampa Bay, and Friday’s version looked considerably different from the pitcher the Phillies saw three months ago.
But Philadelphia’s offense has undergone a transformation of its own, and not for the better.
Take the sixth inning.
The Phillies sans Luis Arraez had Peralta on the ropes when Trea Turner led off with a well-struck, opposite-field single. Harper followed with a bloop single, putting two runners aboard with nobody out.
Alec Bohm entered the night batting .355 with runners in scoring position. But he hit a soft grounder directly to first baseman Jonathan Aranda, who recorded the out at first.
That left runners on second and third for Bryson Stott, another hitter who has been productive in those situations.
The Rays went to left-hander Cam Booser, and Stott lined out softly to second.
Don Mattingly then opted to pinch-hit for Brandon Marsh. Rather than turning to Derek Hill, the interim manager went with Bryan De La Cruz, who entered batting .229 against left-handed pitching this season.
De La Cruz hit a sinking liner toward shortstop, but Jorge Mateo was positioned perfectly to make the play.
Inning over.
It was another opportunity for the Phillies to get back into a game, and another one that passed without a run. They are 1-for-19 with runners in scoring position over their last three games. They tallied four hits against Tampa.
Their deficits have started to feel increasingly difficult to overcome. And even when the offense has managed to fight its way back, the bullpen has too often struggled to protect a lead.
That wasn’t a problem Sánchez created Friday.
The left-hander struck out 10 over seven innings, allowing just two runs against one of the American League’s better lineups.
He worked efficiently, missed bats and gave the Phillies another opportunity to win a game they desperately needed.
It could have been a different story when Rays third baseman Junior Caminero drove a ball deep toward center with a runner aboard. But the wind whipping through Citizens Bank Park ahead of the incoming nor’easter knocked it down, carrying the ball back into Justin Crawford’s glove.
According to MLB’s wind estimate, the gusts took approximately 42 feet off the drive.
Mother Nature helped Sánchez out on that one.
She might not be nearly as cooperative over the next two days.
The Phillies didn’t produce much of anything offensively after the sixth, and Mattingly turned to Jhoan Duran an inning earlier than usual, bringing his closer in for the eighth.
The decision spoke to another problem that has followed Philadelphia throughout the season.
With Jonathan Bowlan recovering from a groin injury, Orion Kerkering at Triple-A and the middle of the bullpen still unsettled, Mattingly has struggled to find a dependable combination to reach Duran. Alex McFarlane has emerged as one of his more trusted options, but he was used Thursday.
Even getting another strong start from Sánchez wasn’t enough to ease the pressure.
And now the Phillies are running out of games.
There’s a wrinkle, though.
Severe rain is forecast for the remainder of the weekend, potentially complicating the Phillies’ final two scheduled games against Tampa Bay. Major League Baseball could be forced to consider a doubleheader, a Monday makeup game or even an alternate site if conditions prevent the teams from playing in Philadelphia.
Whatever the weather brings, those games will need to be accounted for if they can determine the final National League postseason berth.
The red-hot Arizona Diamondbacks entered Friday two games behind the Phillies before beginning their final three-game series against the San Diego Padres, who have already clinched a Wild Card berth.
Philadelphia’s magic number stood at two entering the night. Any combination of two Phillies wins or two Diamondbacks losses would secure its place in October.
The complication is the tiebreaker.
The Phillies and Diamondbacks split their six meetings this season, leaving their records within their respective divisions as the next deciding factor. Arizona holds that advantage, which means the Phillies would miss the postseason if the teams finish with identical records.
There’s no Game 163 to settle it anymore.
The Phillies have spent months climbing out of a 9-19 start, putting themselves in position for another trip to October. Yet with the finish line right in front of them, they haven’t been able to cross it.
They still control their path, regardless of the weather or what happens between Arizona and San Diego.
All they need to do is take care of their own business.
Those tarps in the clubhouse are waiting.