By Theo DeRosa, Sports Talk Philly staff 
Final: Mets 4, Phillies 2
FLUSHING, NEW YORK — Nick Williams was too shallow.
That's all what the Phillies' game against the New York Mets at Citi Field on Wednesday afternoon came down to. Amed Rosario stepped up with two out and men on the corners in the sixth inning of a 2-2 game, and flied a pitch from Drew Hutchison into right field.
Williams was too far in to play the ball, so he turned and ran backwards. Rosario's fly ball landed near the fence, scored both runners, and broke both the tie and the silence that filled a small crowd in Queens.
The game was delayed 95 minutes due to rain, finally getting underway at 2:45 instead of a scheduled 1:10. The Mets scored twice in the first inning, giving the fans who stuck around some closure, and never trailed.
For the third straight game, the Phillies couldn't muster more than two runs. Once again, it cost them in the second straight two-run loss to the Mets, 4-2 on Wednesday.
WP: Robert Gsellman (1-0, 0.00 ERA) ❖ LP: Drew Hutchison (1-1, 3.48 ERA) ❖ S: Jeurys Familia (3)
Hub: Game Summary ❖ Starting Pitchers ❖ At the Plate ❖ Bullpen ❖ What's Next
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
| PHI | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 |
| NYM | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | X | 4 | 5 | 0 |
Aaron Nola might have been hindered by the delay, as he looked shaky to begin the game. He walked Brandon Nimmo and served up a long two-run homer to Yoénis Céspedes.
Williams earned a run back in the third inning with an RBI groundout. Rhys Hoskins walked, and he and Carlos Santana, who stood at third, executed a perfect double steal to score the tying run.
Nola settled in after the first inning, making it through five innings on 87 pitches. His curveball wasn't as sharp as it was in last Thursday's now-infamous start, and he walked more batters than normal.
So manager Gabe Kapler went to Hutchison in the sixth. Hutchison nearly escaped the inning, but Rosario burned him for the go-ahead hit.
Noah Syndergaard was a victim of great plate discipline from the Phillies and had to exit the game after four innings. But for the second straight night, the Mets' bullpen dominated.
Robert Gsellman, Hansel Robles and A. J. Ramos allowed not one baserunner from the fifth through the eighth innings.
In the ninth, Hoskins led off against closer Jeurys Familia with a bloop single and was quickly erased when Aaron Altherr hit into a 5-4-3 double play. Maikel Franco's strikeout capped a 1-4 road trip for the Phillies.
On Thursday, the Phils will open up Citizens Bank Park for the year against the Miami Marlins. Left-hander Caleb Smith faces Phillies right-hander Nick Pivetta.
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Nola | 5.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 2.61 |
| Noah Syndergaard | 5.0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 5.40 |
Phillies
- Carlos Santana: 1-4, R, .167 AVG
- César Hernández: 1-4, R, .286 AVG
- Rhys Hoskins: 2-3, BB, .471 AVG
Mets
- Yoénis Céspedes: 1-4, R, HR, 2 RBI, .278 AVG
- Amed Rosario: 2-3, 3B, 2 RBI, .333 AVG
- Asdrúbal Cabrera: 1-3, R, .300 AVG
Bullpen
Phillies
- Drew Hutchison (6th): 0.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 0 SO, 0 HR, 6.75 ERA
- Adam Morgan (7th): 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 9.00 ERA
- Luis García (8th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 3.00 ERA
- Edubray Ramos (8th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
Mets
- Robert Gsellman (5th): 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
- A. J. Ramos (7th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
- Hansel Robles (8th): 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
- Jeurys Familia (9th): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 0 HR, 0.00 ERA
What's Next
- Thursday, April 5, 2018: vs. Miami Marlins, 3:05 p.m.
- Citizens Bank Park
- LHP Caleb Smith (0-0, 1.69 ERA) vs. RHP Nick Pivetta (0-0, 6.75 ERA)
- TV: NBC10; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
