The Philadelphia Phillies have their ace pitcher going Wednesday — and not a moment too soon.
Zack Wheeler will attempt to keep the Phillies from being swept when he takes the mound against the host New York Mets in the matinee finale of a three-game series between the National League East rivals.
Wheeler (2-1, 3.73 ERA) will be opposed by Mets left-hander David Peterson (1-1, 3.27).
The Mets remained red hot Tuesday night, when Griffin Canning and a quartet of relievers combined to produce a 5-1 win, New York’s sixth consecutive victory.
The Phillies’ third straight loss was accompanied by plenty of cause for concern.
Philadelphia went 3-for-18 with runners on base and scored fewer than four runs for the first time since April 13 — a span of eight games.
“We had some chances offensively tonight,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “We just didn’t come through.”
The offensive frustrations were overshadowed by the early exit of starting pitcher Cristopher Sanchez, who was pulled after two innings due to a tight left forearm. Sanchez said he felt better after the game and wasn’t concerned, but neither he nor Thomson could rule out the possibility of the left-hander undergoing an MRI exam.
“We’ll know more (Wednesday),” Thomson said.
The Mets continued their combination of stout pitching and timely hitting, improving to 6-0 on a homestand that ends Wednesday. They are 17-7 — the club’s best start since 1988, when New York won 100 games and the NL East title.
“We’re racking up wins right now, and that’s what you want,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “But we’ve got a long ways to go.”
New York leads the majors with a 2.37 ERA — nearly half a run lower than the second-place San Diego Padres (2.77 ERA).
The Mets are 17th in the majors in batting average at .233. However, they received timely hitting on Tuesday, scoring all five runs with two outs. Mark Vientos (double) and Francisco Lindor (single) had RBI hits in the first two innings before Pete Alonso laced a run-scoring double and Luis Torrens collected a two-run single in the seventh.
“One through nine, we’re not giving away (at-bats) — every AB, every guy that’s going up to bat is a tough AB,” Vientos said.
Wheeler earned a win on Friday, when he gave up two runs and struck out 13 — one shy of his career high — over seven innings as the Phillies beat the Miami Marlins 7-2.
The right-hander is 5-5 with a 3.56 ERA in 15 career starts against the Mets, with whom he spent the first six seasons of his major league career before signing with the Phillies in December 2019. He tossed seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball in Game 1 of the NL Division Series last Oct. 5, striking out nine, before New York came back to earn a 6-2 win.
Peterson didn’t factor into the decision on Friday after allowing three runs over 5 1/3 innings in the Mets’ 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. He fanned nine without issuing a walk.
Peterson is 1-3 with a 4.98 ERA in 10 games (nine starts) against Philadelphia. He was also 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in two relief appearances during last year’s NLDS.
–Field Level Media
