Philadelphia Phillies at New York Mets

Fri Sep 187:15 PM ETQueens, NY
By JR·2 min read
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PHI
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NYM
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TLDR: New York's losing streak ended the hard way for Philadelphia — three first-inning runs before the Phillies' bullpen-by-necessity starter could even find the strike zone.

Mayza got the ball for Philadelphia in a spot the Phillies hadn't settled well ahead of first pitch, and it showed immediately — Carson Benge's RBI single and a two-run single from A.J. Ewing had the Mets up 3-0 before he'd recorded a second out. Thornton, who'd carried a strong start against the Yankees into Friday, needed only 5 innings and 4 strikeouts to make that early cushion hold up.

Tim Mayza
Tim Mayza
(3-4)·3.46 ERA
Sep 12 @ Braves
ND
3.0IP
0ER
4K
0BB
31P
09/18 Lineup
Zac Thornton
Zac Thornton
(5-5)·3.40 ERA
Sep 12 @ Yankees
W
7.0IP
2ER
4K
1BB
81P
09/18 Lineup

Philadelphia's bullpen picture had a real question mark walking in — Jonathan Bowlan was managing groin tightness after Thursday's series opener — but with Mayza chased in the first, the relief corps that followed actually did its job, keeping the game within reach into the middle innings. New York, playing out a season that ended two weeks ago, got exactly the kind of length from Thornton that's kept his name relevant on a roster with little else left to point to.

  • Day-To-DayJonathan Bowlan (RP)Bowlan was diagnosed with a mild right groin strain Friday, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.09/18
  • 15-Day-ILJesus Luzardo (SP)The Phillies are placing Luzardo (shoulder) on the 15-day injured list Tuesday, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The transaction is retroactive to Sept. 12.09/15
  • 60-Day-ILCaleb Kilian (RP)The Phillies transferred Kilian (oblique) to the 60-day injured list Thursday, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.09/17
  • 60-Day-ILFelix Reyes (LF)The Phillies optioned Reyes to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Monday, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.08/20
  • 60-Day-ILBrad Keller (RP)Keller underwent right elbow UCL reconstruction surgery with internal brace and flexor tendon repair Tuesday, Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.07/29
  • 60-Day-ILJohan Rojas (CF)Rojas (suspension) underwent surgery Friday to repair the UCL in his right elbow and will face an expected recovery timeline of 6-to-8 months, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.06/25
  • 60-Day-ILAdolis Garcia (RF)The Phillies announced that Garcia underwent successful surgery Wednesday to repair a torn right lat, Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.06/24
  • 7-Day ILJared Young (1B)The Mets placed Young on the 7-day concussion injured list Friday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.09/18
  • 15-Day-ILDevin Williams (RP)Williams (shoulder) threw a live batting practice Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.09/17
  • 15-Day-ILDaniel Duarte (RP)The Mets placed Duarte on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with a left hamstring strain.09/16
  • 15-Day-ILRobert Stock (RP)The Mets placed Stock on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with numbness in his fingers.09/16
  • 15-Day-ILCionel Perez (RP)Perez (forearm) began a rehab assignment with Double-A Binghamton on Tuesday, striking out two in a perfect frame.09/09
  • 60-Day-ILJorge Polanco (DH)The Mets transferred Polanco (ankle) to the 60-day injured list Friday.08/28
  • 60-Day-ILReed Garrett (RP)The Mets placed Garrett (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
  • 60-Day-ILTylor Megill (SP)The Mets placed Megill (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.05/08

None of that showed up as drama in the Polymarket room, which drew a well-below-average crowd for a game that meant nothing to the home dugout — "Just the worst fanbase in the world" from one early poster set the tone before the Mets had even batted. By the middle innings, though, the room was very much alive.

Philadelphia didn't fold. Bryson Stott's RBI double in the second got a run back, and solo home runs from Edmundo Sosa in the sixth and Derek Hill in the seventh kept the deficit from getting out of hand — the kind of resilience that's carried the Phillies through their current run. New York answered right back in the sixth, though: Juan Soto put a charge into a 3-run homer that pushed the margin back to 3 and effectively ended the threat.

09/17W@Mets3-0
09/16W@Nationals3-0
09/15L@Nationals3-6
09/13W@Braves9-4
09/12L@Braves2-12
09/17LvsPhillies0-3
09/16LvsOrioles1-7
09/15LvsOrioles5-7
09/14LvsOrioles1-2
09/13L@Yankees0-2

A.J. Ewing added the exclamation point, running down a ball in the ninth to close it out and cap a night where his bat had already driven in 2. The loss barely dents Philadelphia's playoff math with more of this trip still to play, but it hands New York a rare feel-good finish in a lost season — a 5-game skid snapped in front of a room that, briefly, cared as much as anyone left in Queens.

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