Miami @ Philadelphia preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 5, 2018 ) Philadelphia 1, Miami 2

The Philadelphia Phillies spent more than a month atop the National League East this summer, but their freefall over the last month or so has put their hopes of ending a six-year postseason drought on life support. The Phillies will try to avoid a season-high sixth straight defeat on Friday, when they host the Miami Marlins in the opener of their three-game series.

Philadelphia reached a season-high 15 games over .500 on August 5, but little has gone right for the team since, as it has won only 11 of its last 34 contests to fall 7 1/2 games behind division-leading Atlanta. The Phillies, who also trail St. Louis by six games for the second wild-card spot, are coming off a day of rest after falling to 2-9 in September following a three-game sweep by Washington that began their six-game homestand. The Marlins contributed to Philadelphia's woes earlier this month, winning two of three against the Phillies from Sept. 3-5. Miami has struggled to get much of anything going since that series victory, however, going 1-5 over their last six contests after losing both ends of their doubleheader against the New York Mets on Thursday.

TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, FS Florida (Miami), NBCS Philadelphia

PITCHING MATCHUP: Marlins LH Wei-Yin Chen (6-10, 4.72 ERA) vs. Phillies RH Zach Eflin (9-7, 4.42)

Chen's recent run of success came to a halt Saturday in Pittsburgh, as he threw first-pitch strikes to only seven of the 18 batters he faced and yielded three runs on four hits and two walks in four innings. The 33-year-old had been dominant in his previous five outings, going 3-1 while posting a 1.44 ERA and 0.80 WHIP. Asdrubal Cabrera (3-for-24) has struggled while Maikel Franco (7-for-18, two homers) has excelled against Chen, who took the loss versus Philadelphia on July 13 despite permitting one run in six frames.

Eflin's second-half struggles continued Saturday as he surrendered six runs on four hits and three walks in three innings against the Mets for his third loss in as many starts. The former first-round pick entered the All-Star break sporting a 7-2 record and 3.15 ERA in 12 outings, but he is only 2-5 with a 6.35 mark in nine turns since. Eflin was sharp in his two starts against Miami this season against Miami, going 1-0 with a 2.57 ERA while holding the Marlins to a .149 batting average.

WALK-OFFS

1. Phillies 1B Rhys Hoskins' 30 home runs and 62 extra-base hits are the most by a Philadelphia hitter since Ryan Howard recorded 33 and 64 in 2011.

2. Miami OF Lewis Brinson is 2-for-18 over his last five games after going 11-for-22 in his first six contests following an extended stint on the disabled list.

3. Philadelphia 1B Carlos Santana is one of only three major-leaguers with at least 80 RBIs (82) and 95 walks (97).

PREDICTION: Marlins 5, Phillies 4