Phillies Pummel Peterson To Secure Series Win Over Mets On Father's Day

Phillies 6, Mets 2 (Citizen's Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA)

Mets Record: 34-43

Mets Streak: L2

Mets Last 10: 5-5

WP: Zack Wheeler (7-1)

LP: David Peterson (3-6)

Seat On The Korner:

We select a Star of the Game and virtually invite him to take his Seat on the Korner — just as Ralph Kiner did on WOR-TV Channel 9 during the early days of the New York Mets.

Continuing the tradition of Rheingold Beer sponsoring Kiner’s Korner, this season every seat is proudly presented by The Main Event Restaurant & Sports Bar.

With locations in Plainview and Farmingdale, The Main Event features 80+ HD TVs, fresh daily seafood, and Black Angus certified steaks—so you never have to choose between great food and the big game.

Bryce Harper earned his second straight Seat On The Korner with a 3-for-4 night on Friday.

Today's Seat On The Korner goes, for a second straight night, to Phillies' outfielder Bryce Harper. The Phillies saw Harper fall a triple shy of two straight cycles as he went 3-for 4 with a double, home run, and RBI to help Philadelphia wrap up a series victory on Father's Day.

Need To Know:

• The Mets went 2-4 on their six game road trip and have dropped three of their past four series.

• The Mets are now 16-25 away from Citi Field this season.

• Harper and Schwarber homered in the same game for the second straight night and 35th time as Phillies' teammates. Only Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton have more as teammates than them, pulling off the feat 55 times for the Yankees.

• A.J. Ewing, back in the lineup after sitting out against lefty Cristopher Sanchez yesterday, collected two hits in four at bats to pace the Mets.

• Zack Wheeler allowed two runs in 5.2 innings on four hits while walking three and striking out seven to earn his seventh win of the season.

• Francisco Lindor played a full 9 innings in his second rehab game with AAA Syracuse, going 0-for-4 and making several plays in the field. Manager Carlos Mendoza indicated that Lindor is "getting close" to a return, with several reports indicating that it may come during the Cubs' series this week.

• Tyrone Taylor continued his rehab assignment with AAA Syracuse, picking up an RBI single in the same game.

• Christian Scott threw a bullpen session that went well, putting him in a good position to be activated from the injured list when he is first eligible on Saturday.

Turning Point:

Despite a sloppy first inning, the Mets felt like they were right in the game after David Peterson limited the damage to just two runs. The dam broke in the second, however, as Peterson put two men on and threw an absolute meatball to Kyle Schwarber. Fresh off a three-homer game on Saturday, Schwarber dropped it right into the second deck to make it 5-0 and essentially end the game given the quality pitcher on the mound combined with a slumping Mets' lineup.

Three Keys:

The Benge Breakthrough Continues:

One of the few Mets who can leave Philadelphia feeling good about their performance in the series is Carson Benge, who looks like a keeper atop the lineup. Benge produced the Mets' first run of the game in the third with a solo homer off of Wheeler. On the weekend, Benge went 5-for-12 with a triple, two home runs, three RBI, four runs scored and a walk to raise his season line to a .257 batting average with a .722 OPS.

David Peterson Still Struggling:

The magical mystery wheel that is the Mets' fifth starter spot landed on Peterson on Sunday, presumably to try and combat the Phillies' lefty bats at the top of the order. The starting assignment didn't do much to help Peterson's mojo as he lasted only four innings, giving up five runs (four earned) on six hits while walking two and striking out five. Peterson's ERA for the season now sits at 6.09 and it is fair to wonder how much longer the Mets can roster him with results this poor.

The Mets' RISP Woes Are Back:

Despite a 6-2 scoreline that felt quite far away, the Mets had their chances to get back in the game. Their old friend, pressing with runners in scoring position, re-surfaced as the Mets went 0-for-7 in those situations and left six men on base. Two particular examples popped up as glaring examples of missed opportunities. The first came in the second inning, when the Mets got their first two men on after falling behind 2-0. Marcus Semien lined out for the first out before Brett Baty and Francisco Alvarez took completely undisciplined at-bats, swinging at the first pitch they saw from Wheeler to foul out and ground out respectively.

The other opportunity came in the sixth, when the Mets loaded the bases with one out. Ewing managed to plate a run with a fielder's choice to make it 6-2 but Semien struck out to strand the other two runners, accounting for the final margin. Failing to cash in on these kinds of opportunities more often is a big reason the Mets are 9 games under .500 as they enter the last full week of June.