Major League Baseball

Howard gets winning hit in 9th for Phillies

Published Aug. 10, 2014 5:32 p.m. ET

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PHILADELPHIA (AP) Ryan Howard had a game-ending single with two outs in the ninth inning after pinch-hitter Marlon Byrd had a tying hit and the Philadelphia Phillies pulled out a 7-6 victory over the New York Mets on Sunday.

Chase Utley singled, tripled, homered and drove in three runs for the Phillies, who snapped a five-game skid against the Mets.

Lucas Duda and Travis d'Arnaud homered for New York.

The Mets appeared positioned for their 12th victory in the last 13 games against the Phillies in Philadelphia before the ninth.

Cody Asche led off with a double off Jenrry Mejia (5-5) and scored when Byrd lined a hit up the middle. Two outs later, Byrd stole second and, after getting the count to 3-2, the Mets intentionally walked Utley.

Howard followed with a single to right on a full-count pitch.

The beleaguered slugger, who recently was benched for three games, pointed skyward after rounding first before getting mobbed by his teammates near first base.

Ken Giles (1-0) pitched a scoreless ninth to cap four innings of scoreless relief by three Phillies bullpen arms.

Zack Wheeler allowed three runs on three hits in six innings. Wheeler continued to pitch well, though, and is 4-0 with a 1.94 ERA in his last eight games.

Juan Lagares went 2 for 3 with a triple and two RBIs, and every New York starting position player had a hit.

Kyle Kendrick extended his struggles this season. The right-hander was charged with six runs - five earned - on 10 hits in five innings. Kendrick's ERA rose to 4.88, and he is to 0-1 with a 6.85 ERA in four starts against the Mets this season.

Kendrick's first-inning problems continued as David Wright's RBI single staked New York to a 1-0 lead. He has a 9.38 ERA in the first inning.

Philadelphia answered in the bottom half with Utley's solo shot to right.

But New York took the lead in the second on Daniel Murphy's sacrifice fly. The Mets, helped by Domonic Brown's misplay of d'Arnaud's single, added a pair of runs in the third.

Back-to-back solo homers to start the fifth by Duda and d'Arnaud gave the Mets a five-run advantage. Duda upped his career-best total to 21 homers.

Philadelphia got a pair of runs back in the sixth on Brown's two-run double off Wheeler, and the Phillies scored two more in the seventh against Vic Black.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Phillies: Prized prospect Jesse Biddle makes his second start for Class-A Clearwater on Monday since being shut down for a mental break on June 23. The 2010 Phillies first-round pick tossed five no-hit innings to earn the victory in Clearwater's 4-0 win last Wednesday against Daytona.

Mets: Rookie right-hander Jacob deGrom will be evaluated in New York on Monday after experiencing shoulder soreness in the days following Thursday's start against Washington. DeGrom, who is 6-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 16 starts, will not make his scheduled start on Tuesday against the Nationals.

UP NEXT

The teams close out the four-game series at 1:05 p.m. Monday when Phillies right-hander David Buchanan (6-5, 4.39) faces New York lefty Jonathon Niese (5-8, 3.51). Buchanan is filling in for injured lefty Cliff Lee, who is out for the season with an elbow strain. Niese has lost four straight games.