The New York Mets (76–69) play the third game of their four-game set against the Philadelphia Phillies (85–60) tonight at Citizens Bank Park. With the divisional race slipping away, the Mets’ Wild Card hopes are now hanging by a thread.
After last night’s loss, New York sits nine games behind Philadelphia in the NL East and just two games ahead of the surging San Francisco Giants for the final Wild Card spot.
In a worst-case scenario, they could be 11 games back in the division and only a half-game clear of the Giants by Thursday. The Mets need wins, and quickly, to stabilize their postseason push.
In the first game of the series, the Mets squandered a quality outing by rookie Nolan McLean, failing to produce a run in the 1-0 loss. Last night, Sean Manea, one of their struggling veteran starters, was rocked for four runs in five innings.
And then Philadelphia opened the floodgates against reliever Justin Hagenman, who gave up five runs and eight hits in three innings — including a three-run homer by Kyle Schwarber, his 50th of the season. Schwarber is just eight home runs shy of Ryan Howard for the Phillies’ single-season record.
Tonight’s pitching matchup leans toward the Phillies. Cristopher Sánchez (12–5, 2.60 ERA) takes the mound after allowing just two runs across 14 innings in his last two starts. However, his lone rough outing in the past month came against these Mets in Flushing, where he gave up six runs and eight hits over 5.1 innings.
For the Mets, Clay Holmes gets the start. After a promising transition from the bullpen earlier this year, Holmes has struggled since the summer, posting a 4.32 ERA over his last seven starts. This will be his first appearance against Philadelphia this season.
Predictions
Expect Sánchez to be sharper this time around, with the Phillies doing just enough at home.
Prediction: Phillies 4, Mets 3
Starting Lineups
New York Mets
1. Francisco Lindor – SS
2. Juan Soto – RF
3. Mark Vientos – 3B
4. Pete Alonso – 1B
5. Starling Marte – DH
6. Brandon Nimmo – LF
7. Francisco Alvarez – C
8. Jose Siri – CF
9. Luisangel Acuna – 2B
Starting Pitcher: Clay Holmes (RHP) — 11–7, 3.61 ERA
Philadelphia Phillies
1. Harrison Bader – CF
2. Kyle Schwarber – DH
3. Bryce Harper – 1B
4. J.T. Realmuto – C
5. Brandon Marsh – LF
6. Max Kepler – RF
7. Otto Kemp – 3B
8. Bryson Stott – SS
9. Donovan Walton – 2B
Starting Pitcher: Cristopher Sánchez (LHP) — 12–5, 2.60 ERA
How to Watch Mets vs. Phillies
First pitch for tonight’s game between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies is set for 6:45 PM Eastern at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
The game airs live on SNY and NBC Sports Philadelphia, and streams live on MLB.TV.
New York Mets vs. Philadelphia Phillies
Date: Wednesday, September 10, 2025
First Pitch: 6:45 PM Eastern
Venue: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA
TV: NBCSP (Philadelphia), SNY (New York)
Streaming: MLB.TV (out-of-market)
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