Weather watchRain is in the forecast for Citi Field, with a 100 percent chance of showers. If the Mets and Dodgers do peel back the tarp, expect a wet and wild coast-to-coast matchup.
Who’s hot?San Diego Padres – Three wins in a row isn’t much to write home about. But when you’re talking about the Padres, three straight might as well be 13 in a row. San Diego took three of four games with the Astros and hosts the Rockies, starting Friday.
Who’s not?Toronto Blue Jays – Toronto is mired in a three-game slide, sparked by injuries to sluggers Jose Bautista (15-day DL) and Brett Lawrie, who is questionable for Friday’s matchup with the Red Sox.
Key stat 25 – The Philadelphia Phillies will play 25 of their next 38 games at Citizens Bank Park. They’ve been one of the better home teams in recent history, however, the Phillies are just 17-27 as hosts this season.
Game of the dayTexas Rangers at Los Angeles Angels (-146, 7.5)
Injury not to be overlookedKevin Youkilis – The newest member of the White Sox sat out Thursday with hamstring tightness and is listed as day-to-day heading into the weekend. Youkilis is hitting .315 with a .941 OPS and 18 RBI in 19 games since being dealt to Chicago.
Notable quotable“That’s Melky, and that’s why he’s not here anymore … He got a little happy when I think (Gregor) Blanco hit the home run. That won’t be forgotten.” – Braves veteran Chipper Jones responding to the thrusting taunts of Giants OF and former Brave Melky Cabrera during San Francisco’s 9-4 win over Atlanta.
Notes and tips-- The Tigers have owned the AL Central in head-to-head action, winning 40 of their last 58 games against division opponents. The White Sox have won nine of their last 11 within the division.
-- The Orioles have dropped six consecutive series openers, and the Indians have won the last five times that Lowe took the mound in the first game of a series.
-- Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal pulled out of the 2012 Olympic summer games after being set at +300 – the third-overall favorite. Andy Murray has moved to +350 and Roger Federer is priced at +188 behind Novak Djokovic at +150.
-- Edmonton is 3-7 in the last 10 meetings overall and is 0-3 in the newly renovated B.C. Place. The Eskies tried to prepare to overcome that this week by pumping crowd noise into their practice sessions.