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COL@NYM: Young fans nine over seven innings

The Phillies have struggled against the Mets so far this season, but it looks like they're catching their division rivals at just the right time.

The two teams haven't met since early July, when the Mets took two of three at Citi Field. Since then, their trajectories have been quite different. The Mets went on to go 3-14 the rest of the way in July and have posted a 9-15 record in August. The Phillies, meanwhile, have posted a 15-10 mark in August, including winning five of their last seven against two division leaders, the Reds and Nationals.

But Philadelphia still has a 4-8 record against the Mets, something they'll definitely be looking to change come the start of a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday.

The man tasked with getting things started for the Phillies is Vance Worley. The 24-year-old righty rebounded with a solid performance last time out against the Reds. He took the loss, his ninth of the season, but he allowed just two runs over six innings.

It was a bounce-back performance after three straight games where he didn't last long, turning in outings of 3 2/3 innings against the Braves, 5 1/3 innings against the Cardinals and 4 2/3 innings against the Brewers.

Worley has faced the Mets twice already this season, losing both times. On July 3 in New York, Worley was roughed up, surrendering six runs on 10 hits in just four innings. Tuesday will be his seventh career start against the Mets. He's 3-3 lifetime with a 4.76 ERA.

The Mets, meanwhile, are looking to turn their current woes around by continuing their success against the Phillies. They'll send Chris Young to the hill. The right-hander is 3-7 on the season, which started when he joined the Mets' rotation June 5.

Last time out against the Rockies, Young gave up four runs (two earned) in seven innings. He took his seventh loss of the season, but he did strike out a season-high nine batters.

Young faced the Phillies on July 4, taking the loss despite holding them to three runs and five hits over seven innings. The Phillies erupted off the Mets' bullpen in that game, eventually winning, 9-2.

Mets: Tejada might get a break
Manager Terry Collins said Sunday that shortstop Ruben Tejada could be getting a day off in the near future, even though the Mets have an off-day Monday before starting the three-game set in Philadelphia.

"I'm going to talk to Ruben about taking a day here pretty soon," Collins said. "You can tell he's starting to wear down just a little bit. Even though he hasn't played the [amount] of games some of the other guys have, he's still out there every day since he's been back from the injury. It might be time to give him a blow."

• The Mets recalled outfielder Lucas Duda ahead of Sunday's series finale with the Astros. Optioned to Triple-A Buffalo on July 24, Duda has hit .239 in 90 games with the Mets this season. He started in left field and batted fifth for the Mets on Sunday, going 0-for-2 with a walk.

Phillies: Home sweet home
The homestand continues for Philadelphia when they welcome the Mets, and Citizens Bank Park has been a good place for the Phillies of late. After a seven-game losing streak at home in late July, the Phillies have won 14 of their last 20 home games. That includes the last three games when the Phillies engineered a sweep over the NL East-leading Nationals.

Worth noting
• Daniel Murphy has hit Worley extremely well over the course of their careers. Murphy is batting .583 (7-for-12) with a double, a triple, two walks and three RBIs against the righty.

• Chase Utley has hit Young very well in his career. Utley is 5-for-16 with a double, three home runs and seven RBIs against the righty.

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