PREGAME: Mets @ Phillies

The New York Mets (39-39) will travel to Philadelphia to take on the Phillies (39-37) in the opener of a weekend series that is sure to be a hit. Livan Hernandez (5-3, 4.04) will make the start for the Mets, and he is coming off a nice outing against the Yankees. Rodrigo Lopez (0-0, 0.00) will take the mound for the Phillies, pitching in the Major Leagues for the first time since 2007.

Game time is 7:05 PM EST, and will be broadcast locally on SNY. Follow live online via MLB.TV or MLB.com's Gameday application.

Tonight's LineupAlex Cora, ssDaniel Murphy, 1bDavid Wright, 3bGary Sheffield, rfRyan Church, cfFernando Tatis, 2bNick Evans, lfBrian Schneider, cLivan Hernandez, sp
According to the Elias Sports Bureau (courtesy of Michael Baron at Metsblog.com), tonights marks only the second time in Mets franchise history that they have played in three different cities in three days (Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia). The last time it happened was July 23-25 in 1995 when the Mets played in Colorado, Chicago, and St. Louis. The Mets were 0-3 during that stretch.

I think it is very interesting how this team leads the league in many offensive categories, yet remains at .500. Some people claim it is because they leave a large amount of runners on base, but the last time I checked, the Mets were also among the top teams in the league hitting with RISP. Personally, I think it is a combination of untimely bad pitching and bad hitting, as this team seems to click at the wrong times.

What do I mean by that? For instance, they may score 5 or 6 runs in a game (with a depleted offense), yet the pitching will give up 5 or 6 and another couple of runs will score due to mental/physical errors. If they Mets had been playing solid, fundamental baseball this last month, they'd probably be in first place by three or four games given the way the Phillies have fallen through the floor.

Anyway, these two teams always get up to face each other, and with two of three games needing extra frames in their last series in New York, the fourth of July weekend may play host to some exciting baseball (whether the Mets win or lose).

As always, LGM!