Mets at Phillies
The New York Mets have proven they can win when they just manage to get a few runs across for their dominant pitching staff. The Philadelphia Phillies, who host the Mets in the opener of a three-game series on Friday, are not putting up much of a fight when it comes to other teams pushing across runs.
The Phillies dropped seven of their last nine games and allowed an average of 7.4 runs in those setbacks as their starter’s ERA swelled to 5.29. New York sits at the opposite end of the spectrum with a starter’s ERA at 2.95, and is coming off a two-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles in which the staff allowed a total of three runs. The Mets got some unexpected offense in Wednesday’s 5-1 victory from rookie second baseman Dilson Herrera, who went 3-for-3 with his first home run of the campaign. "When they get up here, you have to play them and see what happens - see if they can figure stuff out on their own," New York manager Terry Collins told reporters of Herrera. "We saw he has the power to do big damage."
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, SNY (New York), CSN Philadelphia
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mets RH Matt Harvey (5-0, 2.41 ERA) vs. Phillies LH Cole Hamels (1-3, 4.14)
Harvey posted his lowest strikeout total of the young season with three against Washington last Friday but came out with another win as he scattered five hits over seven scoreless frames. The Connecticut native has issued just four walks in 33 2/3 innings to go along with 34 strikeouts. Harvey has never lost to the Phillies and owns a 5-0 record with a 1.60 ERA in six career starts against the division rivals, including a win on April 14.
Hamels did nothing to improve his trade value while getting ripped for six runs on 10 hits and three walks in six innings at Miami on Saturday. The veteran is a frequent topic of trade rumors but is off to an inconsistent start with three poor efforts and three starts with one or no earned runs allowed. Hamels missed the Mets in April and is 8-14 with a 4.09 ERA in 31 career starts against New York.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Mets swept a three-game series against the Phillies from April 13-15.
2. Phillies 2B Chase Utley, who got two straight games off for a mental break, is 2-for-35 over his last nine contests to drop his batting average to .103.
3. Philadelphia OF Ben Revere is 9-for-19 with four runs scored in the last four games.