Philadelphia Phillies Can Thank Braves Infielder for Their Recent Hot Stretch

Orlando Arcia of the Atlanta Braves gave the Philadelphia Phillies all the ammo they needed.

Aug 29, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies second base Bryson Stott (5) seals second base past Atlanta Braves shortstop Orlando Arcia (11) during the second inning at Citizens Bank Park. / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

After looking dead since the London series, the Philadelphia Phillies have been one of the better teams in Major League Baseball over the past 10 games.

Due to their excellent play, the division looks as good as over.

Unless something drastic happens over the next three weeks, the Phillies will win the NL East for the first time since 2011 and could very well have the best record in the National League. Having the No. 1 seed in the NL would give them home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, which would be massive for them since teams don't want to play at Citizens Bank Park.

It's also the perfect time to be playing well with October is right around the corner.

In years past, the Phillies got hot at the right time and they succeeded because of it. While their luck ran out in the NLCS and World Series over the past two seasons, the hope is for things to be different this time around.

Regarding their recent play, Philadelphia can thank the Atlanta Braves and Orlando Arcia for getting them going.

For a struggling Phillies team, that's all they needed. Arcia hit a home run on Aug. 21 and decided to give Bryce Harper a stare. It wasn't the first time he's done so.

If there's one team and player in baseball he shouldn't have done that to, it's Philadelphia and Harper.

Kudos to Arcia, though. He turned around after that and hit two home runs in a 7-2 win for the Braves on Aug. 30. When the right-handed hitter hit those two home runs, boos came raining down at Citizens Bank Park.

"I think the whole world could hear it," Arcia said, according to Mark Bowman of MLB.com.

He seems to be trying to play the villain role, which is fine, but he also has to understand the consequences.

"I like to think I'm just a player who goes out there to enjoy his game, and if they boo me, I still have to go out there and take those at-bats. So it doesn't really change much," he added.

However, since that game, the Phillies have been a different team. They are 9-2, and have played well on both sides of the baseball.

It'll be interesting to see if these two will meet again in the postseason.

Phillies fans will certainly let Arcia know they aren't big fans of him if they do.

Two talented teams going at it would be exciting to watch if it happened, and either could win a potential playoff series. But this rivalry between the Braves and Philadelphia seems to be growing.

Arcia can thank himself for that one.