 (Photo: Reuters) The offense is dormant. They are 25th in the majors in On-Base Percentage, 26th in Slugging Percentage, and 29th out of 30th in runs scored. The Phillies have scored more than two runs just three times in their first three games and are only 2-1 in those three games. Their batting average is only .243 and .222 with runners in scoring position. The Phillies get some relief today as the Mets throw Mike Pelfrey, who has a career 8.10 ERA at Citizens Bank Park. Taking the mound for the Phillies will be Cole Hamels.
Hamels (0-1, 5.06 ERA, 1.50 WHIP) took the loss in the home opener as he threw 5.1 innings while allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits while striking out nine Marlins. The Phillies offense, once again, did not show up as the Marlins took the first home game of 2012 6-2.
Pelfrey (0-0, 4.76 ERA, 1.94 WHIP) went 5.2 innings while allowing three runs on ten hits while walking one and striking out eight Nationals. The Mets would go on to win 4-3 on a David Murphy walk-off single.
Today is Jackie Robinson Day across Major League Baseball. All players will wear #42 in honor of Robinson who broke the color barrier by making his Major League debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers 65 years ago on April 15, 1947.
The Phillies are looking to avoid being swept by the Mets at Citizens Bank Park for the first time since June 13-15, 2006. The Phillies were shutout seven times last year and, in the games following, were 4-3 while outscoring opponents 40-26. They have taken after the Flyers early on this season as they are 1-3 during the day after going 33-18 (.647 winning percentage) during the day in 2011. This game is big for the Phillies and their confidence. Wednesday started a 15 day stretch in which the Phillies do not have a day off.
The Mets are going to look to jump on Cole Hamels who has struggled mightily against New York. Hamels is 3-10 (.231 career winning percentage) against the Mets in his career and has struggled dating back to last year. Hamels is 0-3 with a 4.61 ERA in his last five games dating to last season. During that time span, he allowed 14 earned runs in 27.1 innings. Jason Bay will not be in the Mets lineup today with a finger injury but David Wright will be back in the lineup despite the broken pinkie.
Today's Lineup: 1. Juan Pierre, LF. 2. Shane Victorino, CF. 3. Jimmy Rollins, SS. 4. Hunter Pence, RF. 5. Ty Wigginton, 3B. 6. Laynce Nix, 1B. 7. Carlos Ruiz, C. 8. Pete Orr, 2B. 9. Cole Hamels, P. First pitch is slated for 1:35 pm at Citizens Bank Park. The game can be seen on PHL17 and heard on 94.1 WIP. -Steve Dolan Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3 Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
 (Photo: Brian Garfinkel/Getty Images) The Phillies just seem to be lacking something over the past two games, in particular… offense. They scored just two runs on Friday night and followed it up today with no runs on six hits. Jonathan Niese went 6.2 innings allowing no runs on five hits while striking out five Phillies. David Wright returned to the lineup today despite having a broken pinkie and he made his presence known immediately. On the first pitch he saw from Vance Worley, Wright hit a shot to dead centerfield to give the Mets a 1-0 lead. The runs would just keep coming. After getting Jason Bay to ground into a bases-loaded double play that plated a run, Worley gave up a two run, two out home run to Lucas Duda to put the Mets up 4-0. They would stretch that lead to 5-0 with a run in the top of the ninth. Worley went six innings allowing four runs on eight hits while walking four and striking out five. The Phillies offense just could not get going this afternoon. Phillies beat writer Ryan Lawrence pointed out that third baseman Placido Polanco does not have an extra base hit this year and only has eight extra base hits in his last 94 games. That has to be a point of concern for the Phillies. The Phillies fall to 3-5 on the year and score two or fewer runs for the fifth time in eight games. This is the first time the Mets shutout the Phillies since 2010. The Phillies will look to salvage the final game of the three game set tomorrow afternoon. The Phillies will send Cole Hamels to the mound, who has ten career losses against the Mets, to face off against Mike Pelfrey, who has a career 8.10 ERA at Citizens Bank Park. -Steve Dolan Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3 Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
 (Photo: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) Yikes. Well last night did not quite go according to plan as the Phillies dropped the opening game of a three game series with the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park 5-2. Jason Bay, yes the same one who entered last night with just three hits on the season, belted a two run home run in the first inning to push the Mets lead to 3-0 over Cliff Lee and the Phillies. Tonight the Phillies turn to Vance Worley to turn things around against the Mets. Mets will turn to “Nose Job” Jon Niese to continue their early season success. Worley (0-0, 1.50 ERA, 1.00 WHIP) went six innings along just one run on five hits and a walk while striking out on Sunday in Pittsburgh. The Phillies would go on to lose the game 5-4 in the bottom of the ninth despite Worley leaving the game with the lead. Niese (1-0, 4.50 ERA, 1.00 WHIP) went six innings allowing four runs (three earned) on two hits while walking four and striking out seven in Sunday’s 7-5 win over the Braves. If you did not notice, that has to be one of the strangest stat lines for a winning pitcher so far this year. The Phillies will look to take advantage of the left handed throwing Niese as they feature only one left handed batter in today’s starting lineup. A bright note for the Phillies of late has been the play of rookie second baseman Freddy Galvis. There have been some growing errors but, overall, Galvis has played well defensively and is beginning to find his stride at the plate. After starting the season 0-for-12, Galvis has rebounded nicely by going 5-for-10 with a homerun, two doubles and five RBI. The Mets get a big boost to their lineup as slugging third baseman David Wright returns after missing the last three games with a finger injury. The Phillies will look to cool off red hot shortstop Ruben Tejada. Tejada is 8-for-19 in his last five games with four runs scored and five doubles.
Today's Lineup: 1. Shane Victorino, CF. 2. Placido Polanco, 3B. 3. Jimmy Rollins, SS. 4. Hunter Pence, RF. 5. John Mayberry, Jr., LF. 6. Ty Wigginton, 1B. 7. Freddy Galvis, 2B. 8. Brian Schneider, C. 9. Vance Worley, P. First pitch is slated for 4:05 pm at Citizens Bank Park. The game can be seen on Comcast Sportsnet and heard on 94.1 WIP. -Steve Dolan Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3 Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
 (Photo: Matt Slocum/AP) The Phillies just could not seem to get it going last night. With Cliff Lee on the mound the Phillies welcomed the New York Mets to Citizens Bank Park. In three career starts against the Mets, Lee (0-1) had only given up one earned run in 21 innings. The Mets made sure they got to Lee as they took the first game of the three game set 5-2. Mets starter R.A. Dickey (2-0) went seven strong innings allowing just one run on nine hits while striking out seven. He had the knuckleball workings as he seemed to keep the Phillies hitters off balance. Lee struggled to keep the Mets off the board. Despite only giving up five hits over seven innings, Lee allowed four runs to get his first loss of the year. Lee only threw 83 pitches and struck out seven. He was tagged in the first by David Bay who hit a two run home run after the Mets already took a 1-0 lead. The three runs in the first is all the Mets would need as they cruised to the victory. A bright spot for the Phillies has been second baseman Freddy Galvis. Galvis hit his first career major league home run as he hit R.A. Dickey’s third inning offering into the right field seats. Since starting the season 0-for-12, Galvis is 5-for-10 with a homerun, two doubles, and five RBI. The Phillies try to rebound this afternoon at 4:05 pm as they trot out Vance Worley to take on Mets start Jonathan Niese. -Steve Dolan Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3 Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
 The Phillies welcome the New York Mets to town tonight for a three game series at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies are coming off of a 3-1 win last night behind starting pitcher Joe Blanton. The Phillies have won two straight to get to .500 and are looking to continue their winning ways this weekend against the Mets. The Phillies trot out Clifton Phifer Lee tonight to face Mets’ knuckleballer R.A. Dickey. The Mets are coming off of two consecutive losses without third baseman David Wright in the lineup.
Lee (0-0, 1.50 ERA, .067 WHIP) threw six innings allowing one run on two hits, while walking two and striking out four Pirates last Saturday in which the Phillies would go on to lose the game in extra innings. Lee was the victim of little run support Saturday and the Phillies look to change that tonight.
Dickey (1-0, 3.00 ERA, 1.50 WHIP) threw six innings allowing two runs on five hits, while walking four and striking out three Braves last Saturday. The Mets would go on to win the game 4-2.
The Phillies are riding high after taking the last two games against the Marlins to win their first series of the year. Shane Victorino, Ty Wigginton, and Carlos Ruiz all went deep into the stiff left field wind the past two nights to power the Phillies to two wins. The Phillies starting pitching staff has been phenomenal and history is on their side. Cliff Lee is 2-0 with a .43 ERA in three career starts against the Mets. He has only allowed one earned run in 21 career innings against them.
The Mets are looking to rebound from their recent skid. They started the year 4-0, including a three game sweep of the Atlanta Braves. David Wright is 7-for-12 over their first four games but hurt his finger. He is not in the Mets starting lineup tonight. Slugger Jason Bay is missing having Wright in the lineup as he is just 1-for-7 over the past two games.
Tonight's Lineup: 1. Shane Victorino, CF. 2. Placido Polanco, 3B. 3. Jimmy Rollins, SS. 4. Hunter Pence, RF. 5. Jim Thome, 1B. 6. John Mayberry, Jr., LF. 7. Carlos Ruiz, C. 8. Freddy Galvis, 2B. 9. Cliff Lee, P. First pitch is slated for 7:05 pm at Citizens Bank Park. The game can be seen on PHL17 and heard on 94.1 WIP. -Steve Dolan Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3 Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
This is strange, even for the Mets. Met starting pitcher Jonathan Niese’s nose was not straight. Apparently it was so repulsive that one of his teammates recommended he get a nose job and actually offered to pay for it. Former Mets outfielder proposed the idea and offered to pay for the plastic surgery to straighten Niese’s nose. That strikes me as strange and what is perhaps the strangest part of Andrew Keh’s article in the New York Times is they actually expect a straighter nose to make Niese more effective on the mound. “The doctor conducted a scan that showed Niese’s nasal passageways were obstructed, but that they could be reconstructed to facilitate airflow. Niese had the procedure done in October, a few days before his birthday.”The funniest part about this is that the procedure was done in October because the Mets season had finished months prior. Maybe all the Mets should get nose jobs to make them a little more competitive this year. -Steve DolanFollow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
 If you have ever ripped on New York for any reason, you must certainly have heard the phrase “inferiority complex” thrown back at you. One of the many things that New York fans have accused Philadelphia fans of having is an inferiority complex. But what does this actually mean? Does Philadelphia even have an inferiority complex anymore?
 The Phillies look to end their six game skid tonight in New York against the Mets. Even with everything wrapped up, these next six games are surprisingly important for the Phillies. It never feels good to lose to the Mets or Braves, the Braves are fighting for a playoff spot, and the Phillies need to get some momentum heading into the playoffs. The Phillies need to go 4-2 over their remaining six games to finish with the best record in franchise history. Cole Hamels on the bump for the Phillies and the Mets counter with knuckleballer R.A. Dickey. LHP Hamels (14-9, 2.80 ERA) went seven innings giving up four runs on seven hits, while striking out nine with no walks on Sunday night against the Cardinals. The Mets are not the team Hamels wants to face right now because, this year, he is 1-2 with a 9.64 ERA. RHP Dickey (8-13, 3.35 ERA) had a quality start in his last start vs. the Braves on Saturday. He went 7 2/3 innings allowing just one run on three hits in a 1-0 loss. The Phillies six game skid certainly has been well documented. The Phillies have hit only .221 over their losing streak and their pitchers ERA has ballooned over the last six games to 4.42. The Mets do not come as the hottest team in the league either. The Mets have dropped 11 out of their last 15 games. The Phillies expect Hunter Pence to be back this weekend. The Phillies are going to work their starters back into a routine to get ready for Game 1 of the NLDS at Citizens Bank Park on October 1st. First pitch tonight is slated for 7:05pm. Keep an eye on the weather. -Steve Dolan
 There is not a person out there who doesn't wish that they were Bobby Bonilla right now. The former 6 time all-star, and world series champion with the Florida Marlins has been out of baseball for nearly ten years now; and he just hit the jackpot. Back in 2000, the Mets desperately needed to clear some cap room and they looked to Bonilla, who was not a favorite amongst the guys in the clubhouse. Starting this year, the New York Mets are going to pay Bonilla a salary of 1.2 million dollars a year for the next 25 years. Usually a player who is released from a team with an average under the Mendoza line and who consistently argues with his manager is not handed a check worth 30 million dollars. What do the Mets say to that? "Of course not!...Err, at least not for at least 12 years." Who do the Mets have to thank for this? None other than former GM Steve Phillips. Phillips was quoted on saying that it was a good decision for both parties. He must have known what a terrible GM he was by planning ahead and knowing that he would probably be fired within the decade. Bonilla agreed to be released by the Mets, although the team still owed him 5.9 million which remained on his contract that he signed in '99. So, he received a IOU with an 8% interest rate. With the interest, he is now owed in the area of 30 million. Starting in July, Bonilla will officially be placed back on the Mets payroll. That should be good for a team that is projected to lose close to half a billion dollars this year. Bonilla is sitting pretty, considering he is already being paid by MLB as well as the Baltimore Orioles in similar buy out deals.
"Why pay today when you can pay six times as much twelve years from now!" -Mr. Met
-Tristan Tschoepe
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