LIVE: Phillies vs. Braves NLDS Game 2 on TBS

ATLANTA -- Anyone else experiencing déjà vu?

For the second straight National League Division Series, the Wild Card Phillies captured Game 1 over the NL East champion Braves at Truist Park. Once again, Philadelphia will send ace Zack Wheeler to the mound in Game 2 on Monday with a chance to take a commanding lead in the best-of-five matchup before it heads to Citizens Bank Park on Wednesday.

“It's always important to win Game 1, but I think Game 2 is pretty important, too,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “It's kind of a swing game, and you can't let up at all against this ballclub, because they're good and they can attack, and they can do a lot of good things. So we’ve got to stay nose to the grindstone.”

In all best-of-five postseason series, Game 1 winners on the road have gone on to take the series 105 of 148 times (71 percent). In Division Series with the current 2-2-1 format, teams that have won Game 1 on the road have advanced 30 of 42 times (also 71 percent). Those figures include last year’s Phillies.

During the 2022 NLDS, the Braves beat Wheeler in Game 2 before dropping consecutive contests in Philadelphia to prematurely end their bid to repeat as champs. Max Fried will counter Wheeler this time around, hoping to swing momentum in Atlanta’s favor following an off-day on Sunday.

• High-powered Braves handed rare shutout loss in Game 1

“We’ve got to regroup and come back and win Monday right now, really,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “We’ve got a really good pitcher that I feel really good about on the mound, and we can't, I don't think, dwell on that. I mean, we’ve just got to look forward to the next game.”

When is the game and how can I watch it?

Game 2 at Truist Park is airing live on TBS.

All series are available in the U.S. on MLB.TV with authentication to a participating Pay TV provider. Games are available live internationally (except in Canada). Full game archives are available approximately 90 minutes after the game ends.

Who are the starting pitchers?

Phillies: Zack Wheeler knows the Braves, and the Braves know Wheeler.

“It's kind of this cat-and-mouse game, especially when you face people so many times,” he said. “I've faced these guys so many times over the years. It's not just this season.”

Wheeler went 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA in three starts against Atlanta this season. He is 6-3 with a 2.46 ERA in 14 starts against the Braves since he joined the Phillies in 2020, including the postseason.

Braves: Max Fried isn’t concerned about the left index finger blister that developed during his final two regular-season starts. The left-hander wore a bandage on his finger in four of the five innings he completed in an intrasquad game on Tuesday. He came away confident the blister won’t be a lingering issue.

The Braves veteran posted a 2.55 ERA while making just 14 starts this season. He missed much of April with a left hamstring strain, then spent three months on the injured list because of a left forearm strain. Fried limited the Phillies to one run over five innings in his one start against them on Sept. 12.

What are the starting lineups?

Phillies: Philadelphia used this lineup against Miami’s left-handed starters in both games of the NL Wild Card Series, so Thomson opted to stick with the same group against Fried. Essentially, Cristian Pache replaces Brandon Marsh in left field.

1. Kyle Schwarber, DH
2. Trea Turner, SS
3. Alec Bohm, 3B
4. Bryce Harper, 1B
5. J.T. Realmuto, C
6. Nick Castellanos, RF
7. Bryson Stott, 2B
8. Cristian Pache, LF
9. Johan Rojas, CF

Braves: Atlanta toyed with its lineup against left-hander Ranger Suárez in Game 1, but Ozzie Albies is returning to the No. 2 spot tonight. Eddie Rosario, one of the Braves' 2021 postseason heroes, is in the lineup to face a right-hander, and Travis d’Arnaud is behind the plate to work with Fried. Here's how the Braves will line up in Game 2:

1. Ronald Acuña Jr., RF
2. Ozzie Albies, 2B
3. Austin Riley, 3B
4. Matt Olson, 1B
5. Marcell Ozuna, DH
6. Travis d'Arnaud, C
7. Eddie Rosario, LF
8. Orlando Arcia, SS
9. Michael Harris II, CF

How will the bullpens line up after the starter?

Phillies: Everybody should be good to go in Game 2 after an off-day on Sunday and with another looming on Tuesday. Left-hander José Alvarado and right-hander Craig Kimbrel can be used interchangeably in the eighth and ninth innings, depending on what pocket of Atlanta’s lineup is due up. Right behind them are righties Jeff Hoffman, Seranthony Domínguez and Orion Kerkering and lefties Gregory Soto and Matt Strahm.

Braves: Atlanta’s bullpen should be fresh, as Spencer Strider carried seven innings in Game 1. A.J. Minter, Pierce Johnson and Joe Jiménez serve as the primary setup men for closer Raisel Iglesias. Minter and Brad Hand are the only left-handers, and Hand had success this past month against Schwarber and Harper.

Any injuries of note?

Phillies: Rhys Hoskins is on the 60-day IL following left ACL surgery in March. The Phils have said Hoskins has a chance to play this postseason, but it would not happen until the World Series. Even then, he would be limited to DH or pinch-hitter duties. Hoskins is in Clearwater, Fla., where he’s continuing to rehab and face live pitching as part of Philadelphia's stay-ready group.

Braves: Charlie Morton will miss the NLDS because of a strained right index finger.

Who’s hot, who’s not?

Phillies: Stott has six RBIs in three postseason games, including a two-out single in the fourth inning against Strider in Game 1. Stott recorded just three RBIs in 16 postseason games a year ago. Harper crushed his first home run of the postseason in Game 1, hitting a first-pitch slider from Strider with an exit velocity of 115.3 mph in the sixth inning. Strider had never allowed a ball in play at more than 111.8 mph in his career. Turner, who went 1-for-4 with two stolen bases in Game 1, has tallied five hits and swiped four bags in three postseason games.

• Phils burn basepaths with franchise-record 5 steals in G1

Braves: It’s hard to say anybody in Atlanta’s lineup is hot after Saturday’s shutout. But Olson (11 HR, 1.147 OPS), Acu?a (11 HR, 1.111 OPS) and Ozuna (nine HR, 1.034 OPS) were three of the Majors’ hottest players after August ended. Braves catchers, on the other hand, hit .168 with a .559 OPS after the All-Star break.

• Analyzing key catcher's interference call in Phillies-Braves Game 1

Anything else fans should know?

Saturday’s attendance of 43,689 was the largest crowd in Truist Park history. The Braves have won Game 2 of the NLDS every year going back to 2019.