Sunday, September 20, 2026 • 1:10 PM
Citi Field • Flushing, NY
LHP Cristopher Sánchez (17-6, 2.93) vs. RHP Jonah Tong (2-1, 3.43)
WPIX
The New York Mets will try to “put it in the books” for the last time at home this season. Prior to being postponed to 2027 due to the presence of weather, the long-time voice of the Mets, Howie Rose was set to be honored. He has been the soundtrack for many fans over the years, connecting generations.
Mets Lineup
- Francisco Lindor – SS
- Juan Soto – LF
- Bo Bichette – 3B
- Mark Vientos – 1B
- Carson Benge – RF
- Marcus Semien – 2B
- Francisco Alvarez – DH
- Nick Morabito – CF
- Luis Torrens – C
Starting Pitcher: Jonah Tong
Jonah Tong has pitched in five games this season totaling 21 innings, surpassing his inning total for last season. He has a 3.43 ERA, 3.86 FIP, 1.190 WHIP, and a 121 ERA+. Tong is coming off of his best start of the season where he held the Orioles’ bats to one unearned run over six innings while striking out six batters. He has 13 strikeouts in his last 11 innings pitched.
The only player on the Phillies who has faced Tong before is Luis Arráez (1-for-1).
Phillies Lineup
- Kyle Schwarber – DH
- Trea Turner – SS
- Bryce Harper – RF
- Luis Arráez – 2B
- Alec Bohm – 1B
- Bryson Stott – 3B
- Brandon Marsh – LF
- J .T. Realmuto – C
- Justin Crawford – CF
Starting Pitcher: Cristopher Sanchez
The Mets have a tall order Sunday afternoon in Cristopher Sánchez. Sánchez is having a superb season, making 31 starts totaling 193 2/3 innings with a 2.93 ERA, 2.79 FIP, 1.224 WHIP, and a 156 ERA+. He is currently leading the league with 7.6 bWAR and if that holds it will be his second consecutive season leading the league in bWAR (8.1 last season).
That being said, he’s had a really rough last couple of games where he has allowed 11 runs over 12 1/3 innings. Sánchez has a 6.87 ERA in the month of September and has allowed at least three runs in four of his last five starts.
In his one start against the Mets this season, he held the Mets to one run over six innings. The Mets have the following career stats against him:
- Francisco Alvarez 1-11, 4 K
- Brett Baty 0-4, 3 K
- Carson Benge 0-3, 2 K
- Bo Bichette 2-12, 3 K
- Francisco Lindor 6-20, 2 BB, K
- Ronny Mauricio 1-4, HR, 3 K
- Christopher Morel 0-6, BB, 3 K
- Marcus Semien 1-5, BB
- Juan Soto 6-17, 2B, BB, 4 K
- Luis Torrens 1-10, 2B, BB, 3 K
- Mark Vientos 6-17, 4 2B, 2 HR, 4 BB, 8 K
Game Notes
As mentioned above, the ceremony honoring Howie Rose has been postponed to 2027 out of the fear of weather.
Three Things To Watch For
- Carson Benge. Benge went 3-for-4 on Saturday hitting his 19th home run of the season and breaking Pete Alonso‘s record for most hits by a Mets rookie. He’s now only one home run away from a 20-20 season!
- 300. Francisco Lindor has one more chance at home to get his 300th career home run. Lindor hit two home runs September 12 and has been sitting at 299 since then.
- Last game at home. It’s been a trying year for the Mets. Sky high expectations to start that fell apart with a disastrous losing streak in mid-April. Lackluster play in May and June, injuries to star players, the Mets were basically out of it by the end of June. After trading away players in July the team was rejuvenated and has played well for the last two months.
