Phillies Opening Day 2024: How To Watch, World Series Odds

PHILADELPHIA, PA — For consecutive autumns the Phillies have bore a freight train of destiny through the baseball world and come up fractions of an inch, fractions of a second short.

It's only fitting that they open the 2024 season on Thursday, March 28 hosting their archrival Atlanta Braves, the team they've upset and knocked out of the playoffs two years running, but who is once again the favorite to win it all.

The particular joyous and ferocious brand of baseball played by these Phillies lends soaring highs and cataclysmic lows to a raucous fanbase that has renewed its infamy these recent Red Octobers. But this Phillies is not wallowing and they give no credence to odds. Their goal is not to compete. Their singular mission is to win it all.

How to watch

Phillies ace Zack Wheeler will deliver first pitch to reigning NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr. at 3:05 p.m. on Thursday at Citizens Bank Park. Wheeler, along with the Phillies game two starter and co-ace, Aaron Nola, was resigned to a lengthy contract extension over the winter.

The Braves will counter with Spencer Strider, which means Opening Day will be a rematch of Game 1 of the 2023 NLDS. Strider and Wheeler are two of the best pitchers in the game, and the Braves and Phillies two of the top ranked teams in all of baseball, making the matchup easily the most compelling in America on Thursday.

Related: Phillies Sign Zack Wheeler To 3 Year, $126 Million Extension

The game will air live on NBC 10. Out-of-market games will also air on MLB.TV.

Unexpectedly, tickets to Opening Day start at an outlandish $155, according to TickPick.

Predictions, World Series odds

The oddsmakers and the general public are not in exact agreement on the favorites for the World Series.

Related: New Foods Coming To Citizens Bank Park For 2024 Phillies Season

The Phillies have about the fifth best odds to win it all, according to odds aggregator Oddschecker.

1. Dodgers - 22 percent
2. Braves - 15 percent
3. Astros - 11 percent
4. Yankees - 10 percent
5. Phillies - 8 percent
6. Orioles - 8 percent

Odds often tell a story of likelihood as seen through the lens of rumor, bias, media coverage, and general popularity. The defending World Series champion Rangers didn't crack the top six, despite returning almost their entire roster. The Phillies have more postseason wins in the last two years than any of those teams listed above. And, as mentioned before, they've eliminated the Braves in consecutive Octobers and advanced multiple rounds farther than the Dodgers.

Of course, it's little surprise to see the juggernaut Braves, who dominated the regular season last year, and who most experts around the league have picked as the World Series favorite, at the top. Nor is it a surprise to see another poor postseason performer in LA top the charts. The Dodgers went haywire this winter, signing superstar Shohei Ohtani to an all time record $700 million contract, trading for All Star pitcher Tyler Glasnow, and adding an array of supporting crew.

But October has been the domain of the Phillies in recent years, and there's little reason to expect it won't be again in 2024.

Fractions of a second

It was indeed fractions of a second that made the difference, Bryce Harper guessed after the Phillies Game 7 loss in the NLCS last fall.

Harper had a chance to win that game for the Phillies in unthinkable fashion in the 7th inning with two men on base, when he ripped a fly ball into deep center field. It was caught just short of the warning track.

“I mean, 109 (miles per hour, the ball's exit velocity) at 44 (degrees, the ball's launch angle),” Harper told MLB.com. “So he beat my barrel by a tenth of second, probably.”

Such is the cruel entropy of all ball sports. And that's how close the Phillies were to changing the entire narrative of the winter and clinching two consecutive National League pennants.

Rolling it back

The Phillies were connected in rumors to many of the big names this offseason, and numerous reports indicate they may have made the biggest offer in all of baseball to Japanese phenom Yoshinobu Yamamoto before he signed with the Dodgers.

However, the Phillies focused their efforts on retaining the stellar talent they already have. They signed Nola to a seven year deal and Wheeler to a three year extension (locking him up for the next four years), and giving the Phillies long term stability with three to five starters Ranger Suarez, Taijuan Walker, and Cristopher Sanchez all under team control for at least the next two season.

The Phillies are considered on the periphery of free agent starter Jordan Montgomery's market, though president Dave Dombrowski has made it seem likely that they would only make a big signing like that if the price tag was minimal.

The Phillies let reliever Craig Kimbrel walk and sign with Baltimore. They also said goodbye to beloved franchise leader Rhys Hoskins when they named Bryce Harper their first baseman of the future. Hoskins signed with Milwaukee.

See related: Phillies Icon Rhys Hoskins Leaves Legacy Of Sportsmanship, Dingers

Beyond that, the Phillies are rolling back almost the entire roster from last season. The only addition to their 26-man position player roster different than the playoffs last year is likely to be Whit Merrifield, the utilityman and former All Star who can play multiple positions in the outfield and infield. He gives the team injury insurance and some flexibility in case the young Johan Rojas, an elite defender, struggles to hit.

Phillies brass could have signed or traded for another star, but they didn't see a move that could improve on what they have. They expect improvements from their young players like Alec Bohm, Bryson Stott, and Brandon Marsh, and they seem ready to hand the every day center fielder's job to Rojas. Meanwhile, veterans Harper, JT Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber, and Nick Castellanos are still in their primes, even if it's the latter years. The organization is completely convinced the core they have can win it all.

Injuries, rotation, roster clarity

Phillies number four starter Walker will open the season on the injured list with a right shoulder issue, the team announced Monday. It's not clear how much time he'll miss.

In the meantime, the team will roll with their planned starting trio of Wheeler, Nola, and Suarez, slotting Sanchez into the game four slot and likely giving the fifth man job to Spencer Turnbull. The former Detroit Tiger was signed this offseason as a depth rotation piece and swing man in the bullpen, and has impressed thus far this spring. He has struggled with injury issues in his career but when healthy, he has flashed potential as a mid-rotation arm.

Storylines around the league

Among the top storylines for this year: What will happen with new Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, who found himself embroiled in a gambling scandal last week when his interpreter wired at least $4.5 million from the star’s bank account to a bookmaker that is under federal investigation.

Meanwhile, the A’s — in the midst of moving to Las Vegas —face an uncertain future about where they’ll play.

The Athletics’ community benefits deal with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority was unanimously approved last week. But they’ll still need three more agreements before the team can begin building a $1.5 billion planned stadium. The next planned stadium authority meeting is expected May 16.

The year will feature some big names vying for MVP, including Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, Julio Rodriguez, Corey Seager and Yordan Alvarez in the American League. Oddsmakers give Soto and Judge the best odds at 14 percent and 12 percent, respectively, with the others coming in at 9 percent, 7.5 percent, and 7.5 percent.

In the National League, oddsmakers give Ronald Acuña Jr. and Mookie Betts the best chance to win the MVP award at 16 percent and 12 percent, respectively. Ohtani, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Freddie Freeman have the next highest odds at 9.5 percent, 9 percent and 7.5 percent.