After 13 years, the Philadelphia Phillies will have to wait at least one more day for their celebrations.

When they open a three-game series against the Chicago Cubs on Monday, the Phillies will again try to win their first National League East Division title since 2011.

Philadelphia (92-64) has the magic number 1 to secure the NL East crown. The Phillies could have clinched the title with a win over the second-place New York Mets on Saturday or Sunday, but they suffered a 6-3 loss on Saturday and a 2-1 loss on Sunday.

“It’s disappointing, but at the end of the day, we can go home and win the thing in front of our own fans,” Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler said after Sunday’s loss. “When we get back home, we’ve got to play a little better and try to win the next couple of series and then go into the playoffs hot. Turn the tide. It’s not the end of the world.”

The Phillies will now turn to Aaron Nola (12-8, 3.54 ERA), who rebounded from two subpar performances in his last game. The veteran right-hander held the Milwaukee Brewers to one run and three hits in seven innings on Wednesday, striking out nine in a no-decision.

“Everything felt good,” Nola said. “My control was pretty good. I felt like I got out early. I got far in a game. It feels like it’s been a while.”

Historically, Nola has excellent numbers against the three Cubs who have faced him most often. Dansby Swanson has a career batting average of .233 against Nola, while Cody Bellinger has hit just 3 of 19 against him with eight strikeouts. Most astonishing is Ian Happ, who never managed a hit in 15 at-bats against the 31-year-old right-hander. Nola has a 6-2 record with a 4.69 ERA in nine career starts against Chicago.

The Cubs’ offense didn’t need much on Sunday, but Mike Tauchman, Michael Busch and Miguel Amaya each hit a home run for Chicago in a 5-0 win over the Washington Nationals. Shota Imanaga was the star for the hosts, pitching seven crisp innings for his sixth straight win.

“We played a good game overall,” said Cubs manager Craig Counsell.

Nate Pearson (2-2, 4.71) will face the Cubs (80-76) on Monday as the 28-year-old right-hander makes his first start since 2021. He has made five appearances on the mound in 109 career appearances.

Pearson will certainly try to silence Nick Castellanos and Trea Turner, who each had two hits on Sunday. Castellanos has seven hits in the four games against New York, while Turner has a safe hit in seven of his last eight games.

The Cubs have been a bit coy about their starting pitchers (and their overall plans) heading into the final week of the season. Even though his team is out of the playoff race, Counsell preferred to reveal only the bare minimum, but still said the right things.

“Nothing changes,” Counsell said before Sunday’s game. “You just go out there and play the game and respect the game, and you respect your teammates and that’s all. That’s what you do.”

The Phillies took two of three games at Wrigley Field in early July, scoring two narrow victories before the Cubs countered with a 10-2 win.

–Field level media