PHILADELPHIA — The T-shirts were printed and waiting for Phillies players in their lockers Tuesday ahead of the final homestand of the year.

“Whatever the hell it takes, Topper,” had been christened the unofficial motto of the 2025 postseason, uttered by J.T. Realmuto in the celebratory clubhouse in Los Angeles. As a guideline for how Rob Thomson will manage his pitching staff in the postseason, though, it remains less a slogan than a salient challenge.

What it will take for the Phillies is 11 postseason wins, provided they clinch the first-round bye that as of Wednesday afternoon was one Phillies win/one Dodgers loss away. But the pitching uncertainty more clearly revealed in a three-game September slide magnifies the need for creativity to navigate the playoffs.

A week out from the st

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