The Phillies go for a four game sweep of the Mets tonight after a rainy weekend in Philly. The Phillies pushed today’s start back to 6:05 due to rain in the area that should be clearing around mid-afternoon. This gives the grounds crew a few hours to make sure the field is playable. It’s also, potentially, an important day for the Phillies as they could clinch their playoff spot tonight. For the Mets, losing three in a row has them knocking on the door again of a protected draft pick.
José Butto makes another start tonight. Over seven games and 32 innings this season he has a 3.09 ERA, 3.64 FIP, 1.344 WHIP and a 138 ERA+. Since joining the rotation in September he’s made three starts where he has allowed only four runs from 12 hits and five walks over 17 1/3 innings (2.08 ERA, 1.94 FIP). The Phillies have the following career numbers against Butto:
- J.T. Realmuto 1-3, 2B, K
- Alec Bohm 3-3, 2 HR
- Bryson Stott 1-2, K
- Nick Castellanos 1-3, K
- Kyle Schwarber 1-2, BB
Cristopher Sánchez is on the bump tonight trying to clinch it for the Phillies. Over 17 starts (91 1/3 innings), Sánchez has a 3.55 ERA, 4.13 FIP, 1.095 WHIP and a 122 ERA+. In his last three starts he’s allowed 12 runs, 10 earned, over 21 innings (4.29 ERA, 3.55 FIP) and this stretch includes an outing where he shutout the Marlins over five innings. In other words, he’s been hittable as of late. In his one start against the Mets this year he allowed three runs from five hits over five innings while striking out four. The Mets have the following numbers against him:
- Francisco Lindor 2-4
- Pete Alonso 1-5, HR, K
- Brandon Nimmo 3-5, K, BB
- Jeff McNeil 1-3, 2B, K
- Luis Guillorme 1-3, 3B, 2 K
- Francisco Álvarez 0-1, K
- Omar Narváez 0-1
Three Things To Watch For:
- Brett Baty hot streak? Brett Baty is heating up as we head into the final week of the season. He went 2-for-4 at the plate with a run scored last night. In his last five games he’s gone 7-for-19 at the plate with five runs scored and two home runs (.368/.368/.684). After his struggles for long stretches this season, it would be awesome for him to end on a positive note and bring that into the winter.
- Jeff McNeil. For the last week or so every day we are talking about Jeff McNeil or Brandon Nimmo. Jeff McNeil has had four multi-hit games in his last six games played. Overall in this stretch he is 11-for-24 with two doubles, a triple, a home run and two walks leading to a .458/.500/.750 batting line. On July 16th McNeil was hitting .248/.324/.321 for the season. After an incredible second half he has risen his season numbers to .272/.336/.381.
- Milestone tracker. Time is running out for these milestones as we enter the last week of play! Lindor is three home runs away from a 30-30 season. Nimmo is still looking for one more home run to reach 25, Álvarez is looking for two more to get to 25 and Pete Alonso needs five more for 50 on the year.
Let’s Go Mets!
