By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Final: Mets 10, Phillies 5 ❖ Attendance: 37,873
FLUSHING, N.Y. — A matchup that took three hours and 40 minutes to play between the Philadelphia Phillies (69-85) and the National League Wild Card-hopeful New York Mets (82-72) ended in favor of the home team Friday evening at Citi Field.
Despite the two teams being even in the hit column at 10, New York slugged past Phillies pitching with five extra base hits, four doubles and a home run. The Phillies were denied their 70th victory of the season and with the loss fell to 28-40 against National League East opponents this season.
In suffering the losing decision, Phillies starter Jeremy Hellickson lasted 4 1/3 innings and allowed six runs on seven hits and three walks. Mets rookie RHP Gabriel Ynoa earned his second career starting nod and the eighth appearance overall of his career. Rookie southpaw Steven Matz was the scheduled starter prior to Ynoa, however he was scratched Thursday with a potential season-ending left shoulder soreness.
Five games remain on the Phillies' seven-game road trip before they return home for their final series starting next Friday against the Mets. The Phillies have lost four of their last five games and have surrendered 29 home runs in their last 14 against their division rivals.
WP: Josh Smoker (3-0, 5.40 ERA) ❖ LP: Jeremy Hellickson (12-10, 3.78 ERA) ❖ SV: Hansel Robles (1)
The Phillies brought home a pair of runs in the top of the second for the game's first scoring action. The RBI singles came off the bats of second baseman Cesar Hernandez and right fielder Roman Quinn, their 25th and fourth RBIs of the season respectively.
During the next half-inning, former Phillies catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud doubled past the diving Cody Asche in left field, scoring right fielder Michael Conforto from second.
Right-hander Logan Verrett entering in relief of Ynoa to start the third. Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco, the leadoff batter of the inning, wasted no time getting acclimated with the pitching change. He launched his 24th home run of the season and the 37th of his career to give his team a 3-1 lead.
The score remained intact until the bottom of the fifth, where against Hellickson and reliever RHP Frank Herrmann the Mets scored six runs on four hits and two walks. The big blows were back-to-back RBI singles to right by center fielder Curtis Granderson and second baseman Kelly Johnson. With Hermann now on the mound, Conforto added onto the damage with a three-run home run to left center field, his 12th of the season.
Quinn made his first career error that inning when he bobbled the retrieval of Johnson's RBI single to right.
With a runner on in the sixth, Darin Ruf entered as a pinch hitter for Herrmann and belted his first home run of the season, shrinking the Phillies' deficit to 7-5.
Ruf's 450-foot homer is fifth longest by Phillies this season. Second longest homer Mets have allowed at Citi Field (Stanton, 454 on 7/6).
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) September 24, 2016
The Phillies threatened in the seventh by loading the bases with one out, however pinch hitter Tommy Joseph grounded into an inning-ending 5-3 double play to third baseman Jose Reyes.
New York added three insurance runs in the seventh against LHP Patrick Schuster and RHP Severino Gonzalez. Mets RHP Hansel Robles recorded his first career save with 2 2/3 shutout innings of relief.
Game Notes:
- Hernandez's RBI single in the second extended his on-base streak to a career-high 28 games, the most in Phillies franchise history since Chase Utley reached in as many consecutive games from June 21 to July 26, 2011. It also extended his hitting streak to 10 games.
- Hellickson tied his career high for starts (31) in a season, previously recorded in 2012 and 2013.
- In allowing six earned runs, the Phillies starting pitchers' streak of 19 games with three earned runs or less allowed was snapped. It would have been the first time since July 4-31, 1982 that their starting staff went 20 consecutive starts accomplishing such feat.
- Ruf's pinch-hit home run in the sixth was the first time he went yard since Oct. 1, 2015. It was his second career pinch-hit blast and his first overall in 41 games.
Rookie RHP Alec Asher will take the mound for his fourth start of the season in the third of the four-game set against the Mets. He will oppose southpaw Sean Gilmartin in a spot start for RHP Noah Syndergaard (strep throat) (Time: 7:10 p.m.; TV: CSN, MLBN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP).
