The Philadelphia Phillies got hot at the right time last year. They're the perfect example of a team doing so. Well, them and the Atlanta Braves in 2021, who only won 88 games and won the World Series. The Phillies did beat their division rival Braves in last season's NLDS, but they didn't win the World Series. Now that they have a taste of what deep postseason baseball feels like, they undoubtedly have the urge to get back there again by making the MLB playoffs.

The Phillies have to stay consistent

The Phillies are 68-57, which means that if they were in either the NL or AL Central, they'd be a first-place team right now. The Phillies seem to be playing their way into the MLB Playoffs much like they did last year. They're getting hot at the right time, and when that happened last year, it led to Red October. However, as we all know, the Phillies didn't walk away with a World Series victory.

It's highly unlikely that the Phillies will be able to snatch the division from the Braves, who are 80-44 and have a 12.5-game lead over Philadelphia. But the Phillies do have a three-game lead in the first-place Wild Card position in the NL, with an 84.7 percent chance of making the playoffs, according to FanGraphs. With 37 games still left to play in the season, anything could happen, including a Phillies collapse.

The Phillies need to stay consistent if they want the opportunity to create some October magic once again. They've lost 6 out of their last 13 games, including two series with a bad Nationals team, one with the Minnesota Twins, one with the Toronto Blue Jays, and have just started one with the San Francisco Giants. The concerning part is that three of those losses were to the Nationals, who just seem to have the Phillies' number at times this season. The others came from potential playoff contenders — two against the Twins and one against the Blue Jays. But even before that, the Phillies lost two out of three to a lowly Pittsburgh Pirates team in late July.

Keep the offense going

A big part of why the Phillies have been so inconsistent is due to the inconsistency of the offense. Throughout the season, the lineup has sputtered, where, at times, they look unstoppable; then at others, they seem non-existent.

Bryce Harper looks to be just now coming into form after having his elbow surgically repaired over the winter. Harper most likely came back way too soon from what his expected recovery time was, but he has played through and been with the Phillies for most of the season, although mostly just playing DH.

There were also the early season woes of Trea Turner, who after coming off a red-hot World Baseball Classic, somehow forgot how to produce offensively. It now seems that Turner, as well, has found his groove and is helping this Phillies lineup that has scored 41 runs over its last five games. Only now has Turner increased his average up to .252, but over the last two weeks, he's hitting .364, with 16 hits in 44 at-bats.

One of the catalysts for last season's heroics was Kyle Schwarber, who is hitting a pitiful .183 with 163 strikeouts on the season. But then again, he's a bit of a mixed bag. Schwarber also has hit 33 home runs, 80 RBIs, and drawn 94 walks.

Look, this lineup is good, nearly top to bottom, but it's going to rely on health and consistent production to get through the rest of the season and reach the MLB playoffs. This team is good, as even their record says so. But there's still a long way to go.