The Phillies are 5-1. Were those six games against the Nationals and Rockies? Yes, but 5-1 is still 5-1.

The biggest test of the 2025 season kicks off Friday night as the undefeated Los Angeles Dodgers come to South Philadelphia for a three-game weekend series.

The Dodgers are 8-0, have scored 45 runs, and hold a +22 run differential. It’s been a group effort for the Dodgers so far, not just the Shohei Ohtani show. Will Smith is hitting .450, Michael Conforto has a 1.237 OPS in six games, Mookie Betts has six RBIs and three home runs in five games, and of course, Ohtani is doing Ohtani things.

The Phillies did dodge a bullet this weekend, though. Freddie Freeman was placed on the injured list Thursday night with a sprained ankle after an incident in the shower. Freeman may be on the Mount Rushmore of Phillies killers, hitting .295 over 213 career games against Philadelphia with 228 hits, 33 homers, 133 RBIs, and 137 runs scored.

I had the Phillies at #1 and the Dodgers at a close #2 in my preseason starting rotation rankings.


Here’s how the teams will line up this weekend on the mound.

  • Friday: Yoshinobu Yamamoto vs. Jesus Luzardo
  • Saturday: Roki Sasaki vs Aaron Nola
  • Sunday: Cristopher Sanchez vs Tyler Glasnow

Rob Thomson said after the Rockies sweep that he’s “excited” to see these two teams match up for the first time. The Phillies took the season series in 2024, outscoring Los Angeles 36-16 across their six regular season games. But in the end, the Dodgers ended up winning the World Series. I think Thomson would trade the season series for that trophy.

Don’t expect to see Jose Alvarado in game one. Thomson said a good portion of Alvarado’s command issues, after looking fantastic in his first few outings, was most likely due to his heavy workload over the last week, pitching 3 of 4 games and throwing 35 pitches in Thursday’s outing.

The Phillies head into this weekend with a scorching-hot Kyle Schwarber leading the way, slashing .308/.357/.808 through six games with eight hits, seven runs, four home runs, 21 total bases, and just six strikeouts. If the Phillies stick to their righty/lefty plan with the leadoff spot, then expect to see Kyle Schwarber leading off every game this series.

Friday’s game will only be available on Apple TV+, and Saturday’s 4:05 game will be on FS1.