Phillies Preview: September 13, 2009 - Game 1

New York Mets (63-79) at Philadelphia Phillies (80-60)
1:05pm - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA

John Maine, RHP (5-4, 4.52) v. Kyle Kendrick, RHP (0-1, 5.06)

The third game of the series will series will also be the first of a day-night double header in Philadelphia, as the two teams make up a game that was rained out earlier this season. John Maine will get the nod for the Mets. Maine has missed a substantial portion of the season on the disabled list. The Phillies will counter with the outcast Kyle Kendrick. Kendrick has spent most of the season in the minors, despite being a relatively effective starter in his first two seasons in the majors. He will try to give the Phillies a shot against the Mets and keep their bullpen in tact.

Kyle Kendrick will make his first start of 2009, after being in the starting rotation for most of the 2008 season. In a brief stint with the Phillies this year, Kendrick got knocked around. However, he will look to make a strong case for a second chance as a starter, either with the Phillies or another team. In his brief career against the Mets, he has allowed a .338 batting average against in 78 plate appearances. Kendrick will need to work ahead and limit base runners in this pivitol game against the Mets.

The Mets will welcome back their righty, John Maine, in the matinee. Maine has been injured often in the last three seasons and missed most of this year as well. However, he has fought his way back and will make a series of starts to finish off the 2009 season, starting with this afternoon against the Phillies. Maine has decent numbers against current Phillies, as they are batting just .256 in 145 lifetime plate appearances. It will be interesting to see what Maine brings to the table, but the Phils must be patient against him.

After losing a heart-breaker yesterday, the Phillies need to bounce back in a big way. In the first of two games to be played today, the Phillies can set the tone behind Kyle Kendrick. They will look to score early and often to save the bullpen as much as possible. However, this will be a challenge, as it is unclear what to expect from the Mets' Maine. The name of the game for the Phillies today is to find a way to win.