"It's huge," manager Rob Thomson said."Obviously we wanted to win both of these games. We had an opportunity to. But to leave here with a split and go back home in front of a packed house of passionate people that I think will give our guys a little shot in the arm will be great."
The rookie Strider, with his electric riding fastball, has been ruthless on the Phils. He was 4-0 against them this season. He allowed just three runs in 21⅔ innings and struck out 34. If Strider does start, he might be held to just a couple of innings because he has not pitched since September 18 when he gave up just one hit and struck out 10 in six innings against the Phillies.
The Phils, who have just one homer in four postseason games, will need to get Nola some run support. An awakening from the top of the batting order is a must. So far, in four playoff games, leadoff man Kyle Schwarber is 0 for 16 with no walks, eight strikeouts and two sacrifice flies. Hoskins, the No. 2 hitter, is 1 for 18 with no walks and six strikeouts. His struggles stretch back into the regular season, where he finished 1 for 19 over his final five games.