Photo: Philliedelphia/Andrew Gillen
Going into this rare five game series against the New York Mets, it seemed as though one of the two teams would emerge as the fourth team still contending for the National League East Division Title. The other would be sent far into the depths of its basement, digging themselves quite a hole to climb out of if they wanted to get back to any sort of contention. Thus far, the team propelling themselves forward is those Mets. Through three games, the Phillies have dropped two, and seem to be on their way to slipping over five games under the .500 mark. After two consecutive 14-inning contests, the odds do not get much better. The good news is, Philadelphia still has a chance to take the series three victories to two, but it will take improved play from both sides of the ball. On the pitching side, Cole Hamels will look to take on a team he has a storied history against. Meanwhile, Jon Niese will make his 18th career start against the Phillies.
Having compiled 28 starts against these Mets, Cole Hamels has seen them a fair share in his career. The two starts he has had this season against them is a microcosm of how his appearances have gone his entire career when playing New York. He'll have his typical Hamels starts, complete with seven to nine innings of work, a handful of baserunners, and a maximum of two runs allowed. That was the case in his most recent start against them on May 11th. He went a full seven innings, collecting ten strikeouts and giving up just a single earned run in a no decision. The rest of his starts against the Mets are flat out ugly, usually consisting of about four to five innings with several crooked numbers and five+ runs allowed. This was the case back on April 29th, when Hamels went just 4.1 innings with six earned runs. He will take a lifetime 7-14 record against New York into today's matchup.
Jon Niese has made more appearances against the Phillies than he has against any other opponent since joining the league in 2008. He has had a bit of a better run against his rival than Hamels has. A typical Niese outing against Philadelphia is six or more innings pitched with anywhere from no to three or four runs allowed. Occasionally, he's gone out on the mound for five innings or less and allowed his fair share of runs. His 7-6 record hold little merit, but it is worth noting that he has typically been able to hold the Phillies in the palm of his hand.
Game Notes
- Cole Hamels and Jon Niese have already faced off twice this season. Niese and the Mets have gotten the best of their opponent in both matchups, but not for a lack of Hamels effort. The first matchup saw Niese outduel the left-hander, but the former World Series MVP pitched better than his counterpart on May 11th. The Phillies bullpen blew the late lead.
- David Wright has been a well-known Philly-killer all of his career. He had posted a batting average of .347 in the last three seasons against Philadelphia, and is hitting near .400 for his career at Citizens Bank Park. In this series, though, he is just 3-for-19 with five strikeouts and a single RBI (albeit a game-winner yesterday).
- Matt Gelb is reporting that the Phillies have called up pitchers Phillippe Aumont and Cesar Jimenez. They have also placed Jeff Manship on the 15-day disabled list and, for some inane reason, optioned OF/1B Darin Ruf. The report on Aumont and Jimenez came last night from Chris Cotillo. The Philies bullpen has thrown 17.1 innings in this Mets series thus far. In order to make room on the 40-man roster for Jimenez, Jeremy Horst was moved off of said roster.
Phillies Lineup
- Ben Revere CF
- Jimmy Rollins SS
- Marlon Byrd RF
- Carlos Ruiz C
- Ryan Howard 1B
- John Mayberry Jr. LF
- Cesar Hernandez 2B
- Reid Brignac 3B
- Cole Hamels P
Mets Lineup
- Juan Lagares CF
- Daniel Murphy 2B
- David Wright 3B
- Eric Campbell 1B
- Chris Young LF
- Curtis Granderson RF
- Ruben Tejada SS
- Travis d'Arnaud C
- Jon Niese P
Location: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Weather: 74° F – Clear – 0% PoP
Game Time: 1:35 PM Eastern
Andrew Gillen, Managing Editor of Philliedelphia.com
