Skip to main content

Series Preview: Metropolitans at Phillies, 4/30-5/2


For the first time in a long while, the NL East rivalry between the Metropolitans (13-9) and Phillies (12-9) is exciting. Unsure if they are contenders or pretenders, New York, riding a 7 game win streak, will visit the defending National League champs as the leader in the division. The Phillies have spent most of the first month of the season on the road, having played just 6 home games, in which they are 3-3. The Metropolitans have spent much of the season at home, to this point, and have played just 6 games on the road, in which they are 2-4.

Read ahead for pitching match ups, key stats and other information on this series.


Friday, 7:05pm. Jonathan Niese (0-1, 3.68 ERA) vs. Kyle Kendrick (0-0, 7.71 ERA). Niese, in 12 career games, has a .307 batting average against. In 3 career road games, Niese has a 6.60 ERA. In 5 career games against the Metropolitans, Kendrick is 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA. David Wright is just 2-for-13 (.154 avg) against Kendrick. In 33 games at Citizens Bank Park, Kendrick is 14-6 with a 4.53 ERA.

Saturday, 3:10pm. Mike Pelfrey (4-0, 0.69) vs. Roy Halladay (4-1, 1.80 ERA). Pelfrey has faced the Phillies 9 times in his career and has posted a 4-2 record with a 4.82 ERA. Pelfrey has appeared in 4 games at Citizens Bank Park and has posted a 1-1 record and a 7.17 ERA there. Greg Dobbs is 7-for-13 (.538 avg) against Pelfrey with a double and a HR. Halladay has faced the Metropolitans 4 times in his career and has a 2-2 record with a 5.55 ERA in those games. Former teammate Rod Barajas is 0-for-9 in his career against Halladay.

Sunday, 8:05pm. Johan Santana (3-1, 2.08 ERA) vs. Jamie Moyer (2-2, 5.25 ERA). Santana has made 4 career starts at Citizens Bank Park...in those games he is 1-1 with a 3.21 ERA. In the last four seasons, Santana is undefeated in his first start of May with a 0.72 ERA. Placido Polanco is 10-for-26 (.385 avg) vs. Santana in his career. Shane Victorino is 2-for-22 (.091 avg) in his career against Santana. Moyer was 1-1 with a 6.91 ERA in 5 starts against the Metropolitans last season. Gary Matthews Jr. is 7-for-23 (.304 avg) with 3 doubles and 2 homers against Moyer.


The Phillies won 12 of 18 meetings with the Metropolitans last year.

In 9 games at Citizens Bank Park last year, David Wright went 6-for-34 (.176 avg) with 9 strike outs. Wright's batting average was 36 points lower in day games last year than it was in night games.

Francisco Rodriguez has 8 saves and has never allowed a run to the Phillies in 10 appearances against them.

Placido Polanco is a career .332 hitter with 13 homers in 93 games at Citizens Bank Park.

Brad Lidge will be activated from the disabled list for this series. Antonio Bastardo has been optioned to Triple A, in order to make room on the active roster. Lidge is 2-1 with 13 saves and a 3.09 ERA in 30 appearances against the Metropolitans.

Ryan Howard hit .208 (15-for-72) against the Metropolitans last season in 18 games.

------------------------------------------

Follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Lidge Shaky, T-Mac Honored in Trenton

TRENTON, NJ- Brad Lidge made his second rehab appearance for the Double A Reading Phillies on Thursday night and it didn't go as well as the veteran reliever or the team had hoped. Lidge struggled with his command and turned in a rather poor outing for the club that entered the night in a playoff race, 1 game behind division rival Trenton for the Wild Card spot in the Eastern Division. On the disabled list since spring training with a strained right rotator cuff, Lidge experienced an elbow strain when he was working back from that issue in late May. In his outing against the Yankees affiliate in Trenton, Lidge displayed difficulty with his control as he threw three wild pitches, hit two batters, walked another and gave up a single, all while letting up two earned runs on 28 pitches in 2/3 of an inning. After the disappointing performance, Lidge was composed and focused on some positive aspects, having reached 89 and 90 MPH on scouts' radar guns, according to some reports. ...

Jason Knapp Q&A

PhoulBallz .com was fortunate enough to meet with Phillies prospect Jason Knapp just one day after he caught the attention of the baseball world with his 7 shut out innings, 14 strike out performance against the Indians' Lake County team. - I asked Jason, the Lakewood BlueClaw , for some thoughts about his big game... I had pretty good command of three pitches (fastball, curve, change up). I was on the same page with my catcher, D'Arnaud , and I ended up, ya know, I felt pretty good. - In a great performance like that, how much credit goes to Travis D'Arnaud , the catcher? More than you might expect, definitely. I didn't shake him off once. He told me what to throw and I do what I'm told. And if it works out, a lot of the credit goes to the catcher. - Does the lack of run support (Lakewood has scored 3 total runs in his 3 starts), in your few starts, increase your stress level, or enhance your focus? No, I just try to go out and do my job every outing. Ya know, we...

Eric B Needs to be Cut (and My Name is Rakim)

While the Phillies are on a hot streak this month, one player on the team is not. Eric Bruntlett is 1-for-12 in July. Since the start of May, Bruntlett's apex in batting average has been .167 on June 14th. Bruntlett's ineptitude can be tolerated no longer. Get rid of this guy NOW! Eric B. is the 2009 Endy Chavez. Remember Endy...the guy who in 2005 managed just 2 hits in his final 42 games played as a Phillie? That is about the sort of output the Phillies are getting from Bruntlett, and it's time to fix this void. Julio Lugo was designated for assignment last week by the Red Sox and is expected to become a free agent. The Metropolitans are rumored to be interested. Why wouldn't the Phillies be interested in a guy who could surely outhit Bruntlett? Lugo was hitting .284 through 37 games played this season with Boston. Suspended Lehigh Valley IronPig Pablo Ozuna is eligible to return next Wednesday. Ozuna is batting .294 through 51 games at triple A. Miguel Cairo is also...