October has a way of pitting baseball’s brightest stars against one another under the harshest lights. This National League Division Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies feels less like a warm-up and more like a heavyweight title fight, the kind that could shape the entire postseason narrative.

The storylines are rich: Philadelphia enters fresh off an NL East crown , rested and recharged after a first-round bye. Los Angeles, meanwhile, stormed into October with a statement, dismantling the Cincinnati Reds in two games with a relentless offense that put the rest of the playoff field on notice .

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Now, two of baseball’s premier franchises collide for the first time since the 2009 NL

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