Cole Hamels Leads Phils Final Home Series of 2013

Photo Credit: Erik Seybold

After a long baseball season filled with disappointment, surprise break-out, and Delmon Young, the Phillies will begin their final home series of the 2013 campaign against the New York Mets. Standing currently at 71-81, the Phillies would have to go 10-0 the rest of the year to match their 2012 record. While that will be nearly impossible, they have already recorded more wins at Citizens Bank Park than they did all of last season. At 43-35, a sweep would put them 11 games over .500 at home. With Roy Halladay and Kyle Kendrick already having made their final home starts, this may be the last time we see Carlos Ruiz in red pinstripes. Nonetheless, there is still some baseball to look forward to.

For the Mets, Daisuke Matsuzaka is coming off of his very first win of the season. Back on August 28th, the Phillies were able to hand Matsuzaka his second loss of the year. In just 4.1 innings, Dice-K allowed four runs on four walks and seven hits. After beginning his stint with the Mets at 0-3 with a 10.95 ERA, Matsuzaka has given up just two runs in his last two outings, and has seen his ERA drop over 4.5 points. The current Phillies roster has faced the Mets' starter a total of 34 times, boasting a .176 batting average, but a .317 on-base percentage. Limiting his walks will be key for Daisuke to be successful tonight.

One of the best pitchers in the entire league in the second half of the season, Cole Hamels, will be taking the mound for the Phillies. A 2-2 record and 4.13 ERA against the Mets this year, is a bit deceiving for Hamels. In that same August 28th game, King Cole went a full 7 innings while allowing just 2 runs and earned the win. With the Mets being a division opponent, Hamels has sen the Mets quite a bit. So, it is no surprise that the combined numbers for the Mets' players against Hamels are as inflated as they are. 65 hits in 224 at bats leaves the team hitting .290 in their careers. However, his recent stretch will mostly help to decrease that line.

Game Notes:

• Cole Hamels has gone at least 7 innings in every one of his home starts since June. In those 8 starts, his ERA stands at just 1.95.
• In his one and only career start at Citizens Bank Park back in 2010, Daisuke Matsuzaka went 8 innings, recorded the win for the Red Sox, and carried a no-hitter through 23 outs. 
• Chase Utley is 6-for-14 on the current homestand with 10 RBIs and two three-run homeruns. 

Phillies Lineup:

1. Cesar Hernandez CF
2. Jimmy Rollins SS 
3. Chase Utley 2B 
4. Carlos Ruiz C
5. Domonic Brown LF 
6. Darin Ruf 1B 
7. Cody Asche 3B 
8. John Mayberry Jr. RF 
9. Cole Hamels P

Mets Lineup:

1. Eric Young LF
2. Daniel Murphy 2B 
3. David Wright 3B 
4. Josh Satin 1B 
5. Andrew Brown RF 
6. Juan Lagares CF 
7. Travis d'Arnaud C 
8. Omar Quintanilla SS 
9. Daisuke Matsuzaka P

First Pitch: 7:05 p.m.
TV: CSN Philly
Radio: 94 WIP, 1210 WPHT