Friday, September 7, 2018 • 7:10 p.m.
Citi Field • Flushing, N.Y.
RHP Aaron Nola (15-4, 2.23) vs. LHP Steven Matz (5-11, 4.20)
SNY • WOR 710 AM • 104.3 WAXQ-FM HD 2 • ESPN 1050 AM
If the Phillies want to make the post-season, they need to sweep the Mets. Can the Mets play spoiler? That’s going to be the story line all weekend in Queens unless if the Mets decide they can actually put David Wright in the lineup. The Mets are coming off a game in LA where they seemed to get every possible lucky break and bloop hit in one night that alluded them all of May and June. Did they bring that luck with them back east? They’ll need it tonight against Aaron Nola.
Mets Lineup
- Brandon Nimmo – CF
- Jeff McNeil – 2B
- Michael Conforto – LF
- Jay Bruce – RF
- Todd Frazier – 3B
- Dominic Smith – 1B
- Kevin Plawecki – C
- Jose Reyes – SS
- Steven Matz – LHP
Phillies Lineup
- Carlos Santana – 1B
- Rhys Hoskins – LF
- Aaron Altherr – CF
- Jose Bautista – RF
- Asdrubal Cabrera – 3B
- Cesar Hernandez – 2B
- Scott Kingery – SS
- Jorge Alfaro – C
- Aaron Nola – RHP
The Mets will send out Steven Matz who is 5-11 over 25 starts and 128.2 innings with a 4.20 ERA, 4.61 FIP, 1.267 WHIP and an 88 ERA+. He is coming off back to back starts of pitching 7.0 innings allowing 1 run with 18 K’s over those 14.0 innings. He has had two very different starts against the Phillies this year both in Philly. In May he allowed 1 run over 5.0 innings and in August he allowed 6 runs, 4 earned over 2.0 innings. The Phillies have the following numbers against him:
- Ramos 3-11
- Hernandez 3-7, BB
- Hoskins 1-5
- Santana 0-8
- Bour 0-6, 2 K
- Herrera 1-5, HR
- Franco 2-5
- Williams 2-4
- Nola 0-1
The Mets have not helped their Cy-Young award candidate in deGrom at all by not scoring runs. They can help him by tagging Nola up tonight and putting a ton of crooked numbers on the scoreboard. Nola is 15-4 over 28 games and 181.2 innings with a 2.23 ERA, 2.76 FIP, 0.974 WHIP and 187 ERA+. He is coming off a poor start against the Cubs where he allowed 4 runs over 5.2 innings after an August of posting a 1.06 ERA over 5 games and 34.0 innings. He has dominated the Mets this year posting a 1.44 ERA over 4 games and 25.0 innings. The Mets have the following numbers against Nola:
- Conforto 3-15, HR
- Bruce 3-11, BB
- Nimmo 1-8, 4 BB
- Rosario 3-12, 2B
- Flores 2-7
- Plawecki 0-5
- Reyes 1-7
- Frazier 0-4, BB
- Jackson 2-5, 3 K
Game Notes
Jeff McNeil has hit safely in 18 of his last 19 starts and has reached base safely in each of those 19 starts. His .321 (43-134) batting average since his debut on July 24 is ninth in the NL (min. 140 PA).
The Mets have won 20 of their last 26 series vs. the Phillies. New York is 46-24 vs. Philadelphia since the start of the 2015 campaign, including 8-5 this year. New York has out-homered the Phillies, 113-59 since the start of the 2015 season.
Amed Rosario is hitting .346/.375/.505 with 6 2B, 3B, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 19 R, and 7 SB over his last 24 games.
The Mets lost a member of our extended family recently. Marie DeBenedittis from the legendary Mama’s of Corona, who prepared Italian food for Mets players and fans for over 30 years, passed away at age 63. There will be a moment of silence prior to tonight’s game.
Let’s Go Mets!
