Philadelphia – Perhaps the most impressive work for the New York Mets this weekend was the fact they were able to complete their entire four-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies. Major League Baseball’s weather department deserves some credit for finding windows to play these games, including a five-hour delay to the start time today, but the result in every game was the same as the one before it. In this case, the Phillies (87-69) defeated the Mets (71-85) 5-2 to complete a four-game sweep of this weekend series.
Jose Butto drew the start for the Mets and was coming off of a string of strong starts before returning to the site of his awful big-league debut last year. Things didn’t go much better tonight as Butto (L, 1-3) tossed three scoreless innings before running into trouble in the fourth. J.T. Realmuto got the Phillies on the board with a two-run single before Nick Castellanos launched a two-run homer (29) to make it 4-0. The fourth would be the final frame for Butto, who gave up four runs on four hits while walking two and striking out five.
The Phillies tacked on another run in the fifth on a Bryce Harper RBI single off of Grant Hartwig, which would be plenty of run support for starter Christopher Sanchez. The Mets couldn’t do much against Sanchez (W, 3-5), who allowed just two runs on three hits over seven innings while striking out ten. The only damage the Mets did on the afternoon came in the sixth, when Ronny Mauricio launched his second homer of the season on this ridiculous piece of contact, and it also served as the lone highlight for the Mets on the day.
Two-run shot by Ronny Mauricio! #LGM pic.twitter.com/HdkVmHMCbi
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 24, 2023
Player Of The Game:
Today’s Player Of The Game award goes to Phillies’ starting pitcher Christopher Sanchez, who dominated the Mets’ lineup for seven strong innings.
Post-Game Notes:
Mets’ catcher Francisco Alvarez left the game in the sixth inning after taking consecutive foul tips off his catching hand. X-rays were negative and he is considered day-to-day.
Michael Lorenzen worked a scoreless ninth inning for the Phillies to pick up his first save of the season.
Anthony Kay, a former first-round draft pick of the organization who was dealt away in the Marcus Stroman deal in 2019, made his Mets’ debut after being added to the active roster today by tossing 1.2 scoreless innings.
The Mets went 2-5 on this seven-game road trip and finished the year with a 1-6 record at Citizen’s Bank Park.
The Mets finished with a 32-49 record on the road in 2023.
What’s Next:
The Mets are off tomorrow before returning home to kick off their final home stand of the season on Tuesday. First up is a three-game series against the Miami Marlins (81-75), who are still trying to snag a wild card spot in the National League, and providing the Mets with their last real opportunity to play spoiler. Lefty Joey Lucchesi (3-0, 2.88 ERA) will make his final start of the season for the Mets. The Marlins will counter with lefty Braxton Garrett (9-6, 3.53 ERA) to complete a matchup of southpaws. First pitch for the opener is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. at Citi Field.
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