The Phillies walked into Citi Field and did more than just beat the Mets - they finally snapped a stretch that had made the ballpark feel like a dead end for them. Philadelphia took two of three in New York, and Sunday’s 5-4 win sealed the club’s first series victory at Citi Field in nearly five years.
The timing mattered, too. The Mets had just moved on from Carlos Mendoza and handed the dugout to interim manager Andy Green, who shifted from senior vice president of player development to the top seat.
Green, a former player for the Diamondbacks and Mets, had also managed the Padres from 2016-2019. He inherited a team already in trouble: New York had dropped six straight and sat at 34-47 when Mendoza was let go, following a four-game sweep by the Cubs in Flushing.
Philadelphia had every reason to like the matchup. Citi Field had been a nightmare for the Phillies, who were 6-22 there since 2022, and they came in looking to finally change that story. They did just that by winning the series, even if the weekend wasn’t clean from start to finish.
Zack Wheeler set the tone in Game 1 with seven innings of one-run ball in a 2-1 Phillies win, lowering his ERA to 2.03. That victory also ended a 10-game road losing streak against the Mets. New York answered back Saturday with a 6-2 win after the Phillies had led 2-0 through five innings before unraveling in the sixth and seventh.
Sunday brought more drama. Chase Shugart gave up three runs in just one-third of an inning, spoiling a strong Jesús Luzardo start and a 3-1 Phillies lead in the sixth.
But Kyle Schwarber came through again, launching a go-ahead two-run blast to center in the seventh to put Philadelphia ahead 5-4. The Phillies held on from there.
The bigger picture makes the weekend look even clearer. The Mets are in last place in the division at 35-49 and still searching for answers in a season that has gone sideways despite Juan Soto’s $765 million deal.
The Phillies, meanwhile, have surged over the last two months, climbed to 10 games above .500, and sit within three games of the Braves for first in the NL East. A recent MLB power ranking placed the Phillies at No. 5 and the Mets at No.
There’s also a contrast in how the two clubs are being run right now. Since Don Mattingly took over for Rob Thomson in late April, the Phillies have posted the best record in baseball at 38-18. The Mets, after hearing calls for Mendoza’s dismissal all season, waited until now to make their move - and by then, the damage may already have been done.
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Any upgrade, though, comes with a built-in wrinkle. Adding a bat that can change the balance of the lineup also means sorting out where everyone fits on the field, and Bryce Harper's presence makes that a real conversation in Philadelphia. The Phillies can explore plenty of options before the deadline, but until they make a move, the bigger question is whether the fix they want will force them into a tougher decision elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]
Phillies Deadline Gamble Could Finally Fix Their Most Frustrating Lineup Problem
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Any move of that kind would ripple through the roster. Bryson Stott could wind up in a different defensive home, Trea Turner might be asked to shift off the dirt, and the Phillies would be betting that a roster shuffle can solve a balance issue that has lingered for months. The Tigers are not in a position to ignore deadline value either, so this is the sort of situation that could move quickly if the right pieces line up. [Read more 🡒]