Philadelphia @ New York preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 19, 2012 ) Philadelphia 3, NY Mets 2

The Philadelphia Phillies are desperately clinging to their playoff hopes as the schedule gets shorter and shorter. The Phillies shocked the New York Mets in a 3-2 win on Wednesday but still trail the St. Louis Cardinals by four games for the second National League wild card spot with 13 games left. The Mets are unlikely to put up much of a fight at home, where they have dropped eight straight and 24 of 28.

Ryan Howard played the hero on Wednesday, belting a two-run homer to deep right in the top of the ninth inning as the Phillies stole a win despite managing only three hits. Philadelphia has taken the first two games of the series despite just three runs in each game and has won 10 of its last 13 overall. The Mets are in the midst of an historic stretch of offensive futility. New York extended its franchise record of scoring three runs or less at home to 15 straight games with Wednesday’s setback and is averaging just 2.3 runs in losing 10 of its last 11 games overall.

TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, PHI 17 (Philadelphia), SNY (New York)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies RHP Tyler Cloyd (1-1, 4.95 ERA) vs. Mets RH Jeremy Hefner (2-6, 4.99)

Cloyd was scheduled to pitch Tuesday but was pushed back due to the rainout. The rookie right-hander is coming off his shortest start, a three-inning effort at Houston last week in which he was charged with three runs on five hits. Cloyd has been knocked around for seven runs and 13 hits in seven innings over his last two turns. The 25-year-old made his major-league debut against New York on Aug. 29, yielding three runs in six innings to suffer the loss.

Hefner was pushed back from his scheduled start on Wednesday and will be looking for his first win since Aug. 4 at San Diego. The rookie has bounced between the bullpen and the rotation over the past few months and is 2-5 with a 5.24 ERA in 10 starts. Hefner beat the Phillies in a start on May 29, allowing three runs on six hits in six innings, but was knocked around by them for three runs in just 1 1/3 innings out of the bullpen on July 4.

WALK-OFFS

1. Mets closer Frank Francisco was diagnosed with elbow tendinitis. Josh Edgin got the save opportunity on Wednesday and served up Howard’s blast.

2. Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins went 1-for-3 with a home run and a walk Wednesday to boost his average to .333 (23-for-69) in September.

3. Mets 3B David Wright homered Wednesday for the first time this month. He is batting .255 in the second half, nearly 100 points lower than his .351 mark prior to the All-Star break.