Philadelphia @ Miami preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 12, 2012 ) Miami 1, Philadelphia 3

When the season started, the Philadelphia Phillies' weekend series at the Miami Marlins was viewed by some as a potential showdown for the NL East crown. Injuries and unfulfilled promise, however, results in the series merely being a battle of two teams making their offseason plans. Philadelphia sits at .500 with six games remaining, while Miami has lost seven in a row to reach 90 losses. The Phillies have won six of their past 10 contests and come into the series opener at Miami one game above .500 on the road (38-37).

One positive for Philadelphia has been the play of Kevin Frandsen, who has earned the starting nod at third base. Frandsen is hitting .335 after a 2-for-4 performance in Thursday’s loss to Washington. A good pitching matchup is on tap for the series opener. Philadelphia left-hander Cliff Lee goes for his fourth win in September against Miami left-hander Mark Buehrle, who looks to move above .500 on the season.

TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, PHL 17 (Philadelphia), Fox Sports Florida (Miami)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Phillies LH Cliff Lee (6-8, 3.18 ERA) at Marlins LH Mark Buehrle (13-13, 3.84).

After winning just three starts in his first five months, Lee is 3-1 in September with a 0.99 ERA. The left-hander has struck out 21 hitters in 16 innings in his past two starts. Lee is 1-1 with a 4.63 ERA in two starts against Miami this season.

The No. 13 has proven lucky for Buehrle as he has won 13 games each of the past four seasons. In his first season in the National League, Buehrle is 2-2 in four starts with a 3.91 ERA this season with just two walks in 25 1/3 innings. Buehrle lost to the Mets in his last start Saturday, allowing four earned runs on five hits in six innings.

WALK-OFFS

1. Philadelphia SS Jimmy Rollins needs two more runs scored for his sixth career 100-run season.

2. The Marlins announced they will sign former Cubs’ prospect Adam Greenberg to a one-day contract and he will play Tuesday against the Mets. In his only major-league plate appearance in 2005, Greenberg was hit in the head on the first pitch by Marlins’ pitcher Valerio de los Santos.

3. Philadelphia finished its home schedule at 40-41, its first sub-.500 season at home since 2000.