The St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies meet in Game 1 of the best-of-three Wild Card Series on Friday. In keeping with the rules of the new postseason structure, all games of this series will be hosted by the higher-seeded Cardinals. The winner of this series will advance to the best-of-five Nationals League Division Series to face the NL East-champion Atlanta Braves.
You can view the full postseason schedule by clicking here, and here's the 2022 playoff bracket. Now, let's get to the important stuff for Game 1.
How to watch
Date: Friday, Oct. 7 | Time: 2:07 p.m. ET
Location: Busch Stadium (St. Louis, Missouri)
TV channel: ABC | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Starting pitchers: LHP Jose Quintana (3-2, 2.01 ERA with Cardinals) vs. RHP Zack Wheeler (12-7, 2.82 ERA)
Preview
Assuming the two teams in question are roughly evenly matched, the team that wins Game 1 of a best-of-three has a 75 percent chance of winning the series. So Game 1, suffice it to say, is critical.
Wheeler goes for Philly, and he enjoyed a great deal of success this season against the Cardinals across a pair of July starts. In 14 combined innings, he allowed no runs on nine hits (all singles) with 10 strikeouts and two walks. The St. Louis lineup looks a bit different these days, but the concerns they have against right-handed pitching are still just that -- concerns. On the other side, Quintana has been the Cardinals' best starting pitcher since the deadline trade that brought him over from Pittsburgh. The Phillies have been especially potent against lefties this season, so that presents a challenge for Quintana. Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol indicated that right-handed starters Jack Flaherty and Adam Wainwright will be available out of the bullpen in Game 1, so it's possible he may look to piggyback after Quintana gets through the order the first time.
Prediction
The Phillies have been on another level since Rob Thomson replaced Joe Girardi as manager, and the pitching matchups in this one work toward their strengths. We'll say Philly steals the opener.
Pick: Phillies 5, Cardinals 3
