Yanks - Mets Subway Series Preview

Yankees - Mets
@ Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium
(4 games)

The Yankees and Mets meet for the second meeting in the over hyped and overrated Subway Series.

In the first round the Mets took both of the games played at Yankee Stadium, with the third game being rained out and set to be made up at the start of this series this afternoon at 2:05 p.m..

The Mets come into this series coming off a disappointing series vs. the Seattle Mariners where they lost two of three. They're currently 38-39 and 3.5 games behind first place Philadelphia in the NL East.

The Yanks enter the series following a series split with the Pittsburgh Pirates in Pittsburgh. They dropped the first game, but won the second by the score of 10-0, and were leading in the rubber game 3-1 before the game was postponed due to rain. The Yanks are currently 42-36 and 5.5 games behind first place Boston in the AL East. They also trail Tampa Bay by 5 games in the Wild Card race.

MATCHUPS

Game 1 - Today @ 2:05 p.m.
TV: MY9, SNY, Radio: WCBS 880, WFAN 660
Dan Giese RHP (1-2, 0.64) vs. Mike Pelfrey LHP (4-6, 4.30)

Game 2 - Tonight @ 8:10 p.m.
TV: YES, CW 11, Radio: WCBS 880, WFAN 660
Sidney Ponson RHP (4-1, 3.88) vs. Pedro Martinez RHP (4-4, 6.57)

Game 3 - Tomorrow @ 3:55 p.m.
TV: FOX, Radio: WCBS 880, WFAN 660
Andy Pettitte LHP (8-5, 4.04) vs. Johan Santana LHP (7-6, 2.93)

Game 4 - Sunday @ 1:10 p.m.
TV: YES, SNY, Radio: WCBS 880, WFAN 660
Darrell Rasner RHP (4-5, 4.50) vs. Oliver Perez LHP (5-5, 5.29)

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Yankees - Alex Rodriguez: A-Rod has continued his hot hitting since returning from the DL, and for the month of June his batting average is .381. He's also hit 7 HR and driven in 20 RBIs this month. For the season A-Rod is leading the Yankees with a .327 batting average, and has 14 HR, 42 RBI, and an OPS of 1.010.

A-Rod was on the DL the first time these two teams met, but in his career he has done very well against the Mets, hitting .333 with 7 HR, 24 RBI, and an OPS of .968 in 27 games. But he has not faired as well at Shea Stadium where he is just a .244 hitter with 2 HR, 7 RBI, and an OPS of .764.

A-Rod vs. Pelfrey: NR
A-Rod vs. Pedro: .302 (16-for-53), 1 HR, 4 RBI, 18 K, .747 OPS
A-Rod vs. Santana: .211 (4-for-19), 2 HR, 2 RBI, .844 OPS
A-Rod vs. Perez: 0-for-8, 3 K

Mets - Jose Reyes: The Mets' SS is leading the team in hitting with a .292 batting average, he also has 9 HR, 34 RBI, and a team-leading 27 stolen bases. He played very well in the first series between these two cross-town rivals, hitting .400 with 2 HR, and 4 RBI. But throughout his career he has not been as successful, in 32 games he's hit .248 with 3 HR, 23 RBI, and an OPS of .661.

Reyes vs. Giese: NR
Reyes vs. Ponson: NR
Reyes vs. Pettitte: .211 (4-for-19), .421 OPS
Reyes vs. Rasner: 1-for-1

INJURY REPORT

Yankees:
- Chien-Ming Wang is out till at least September with a mid-foot tearing of the Lisfranc ligament and a partial tear of the peroneal longus tendon.
- Ian Kennedy is on the 15-day DL with with a strained right lat muscle and bursitis under the right shoulder blade. He made a rehab start yesterday with the GCL Yankees (3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 K).
- Phil Hughes is out till at least August with a stress fracture of the rib.
- Brian Bruney is out with an injured foot, but could return after the All Star Game.
- Jonathan Albaladejo is out for the year with a stress fracture in his right elbow.
- Chris Britton is on the 15-day DL with a pulled right ribcage.
- Hideki Matsui is nursing a inflamed left knee and is day-to-day, and may be headed to the DL.
- Johnny Damon is suffering from an arch problem in his foot and is day-to-day.

Mets:
- Ryan Church is on the 15-day DL recovering from a concussion. He played five innings in right field and went 3-for-3 in a rehab game with Low-A Brooklyn on Thursday
- Moises Alou is on the 15-day DL with a strained calf.