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Hottest teams in NL meet when Phillies take on Marlins

Sep 19, 2008 - 10:18 AM Philadelphia (86-67) at Florida (80-72) 7:10 p.m. EDT

MIAMI (Ticker) -- When the Philadelphia Phillies dropped a 7-3 decision against the Florida Marlins on September 10, they fell 3 1/2 games behind the New York Mets in the National League East.

Neither team has lost since, but that trend must end when the first-place Phillies put their seven-game winning on the ling against the red-hot Marlins on Friday.

Florida used a pair of victories in their last trip to Philadelphia from September 8-10 to spark an eight-game winning streak that has kept it in contention for the NL wild-card spot. The Marlins (80-72), fresh off a three-game sweep of the reeling Houston Astros (80-72), sit five games behind the Mets (85-67) in the wild-card race.

Philadelphia (86-67) holds a one-half game lead on the Mets in the NL East.

Brett Myers (10-11, 4.06) took the loss in the September 10 matchup and will look for a better outing. The righthander, who had won four consecutive starts, allowed four runs and eight hits over 7 1/3 innings.

Myers rebounded in last start, pitching a one-run, two-hit complete game in a 6-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. He is 7-2 with a 1.80 ERA in 11 starts since returning from a stint in the minor leauges.

The Marlins send Josh Johnson (5-1, 3.30) to the hill. The righthander has been stellar since rejoining the rotation after missing the first three months with an injury, posting eight straight starts with at least six innings pitched and three runs or less allowed.

Johnson is 1-0 in two starts this season against the Phillies with a 1.42 ERA. He pitched six scoreless innings on August 9, earning the victory in the Marlins 8-2 win.