Philadelphia Phillies

Phillies may change closers ahead of opener vs. Mets (Apr 10, 2017)

Published Apr. 10, 2017 3:34 a.m. ET

PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia Phillies won their weekend series against the Washington Nationals, but there is a problem they need to get sorted out if they are going to make it three straight wins on Monday night when the New York Mets come to town to begin a three-game set.

Jeanmar Gomez, who recorded 37 saves a year ago in his first season as the Phillies' closer, struggled mightily down the stretch in 2016, giving up 17 runs in eight September innings. And with confidence in him already shaken entering 2017, the leash was short to begin with.

The first week of the season brought more struggles for the 29-year-old Venezuelan.

In his first appearance of the year, Gomez gave up a two-run home run but managed to get the save in a 4-3 Phillies win at Cincinnati.

After a scoreless inning his next time out, he blew a save on Sunday, allowing two one-out baserunners and then a three-run home run to Washington's Ryan Zimmerman. Gomez was awarded the win when the Phillies scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth.

Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said he would speak with Gomez on Monday to reassess the situation. A change is possible. Hector Neris, who had a 2.58 ERA in 79 appearances last year, is the most likely candidate to replace Gomez.

"We'll see," Mackanin said. "We're gonna discuss what we have to do to do what's best for the team. I'm considering it."

Despite the troubles, Gomez said his confidence is not shaken.

"You can only control what you can control," he said. "You can control your preparation for the game. And you know that you have confidence in your teammates."

The Phillies' starter Monday, Jerad Eickhoff (0-1, 2.70 ERA) took the loss in his season debut, a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Reds. He gave up two runs on five hits in 6 2/3 innings, striking out six and walking one.

A lack of run support isn't anything new for Eickhoff, who has gotten either one or zero runs from the offense in 18 of his 42 career starts.

"I can't control that," Eickhoff said after the defeat. "Those guys are busting their butts. They're working their butts off every day to get hits and to work in the cage. I can't control it. I'm trying to get outs."

He has a 1-4 record with a 2.66 ERA in seven career starts against the Mets.

The Mets counter with Jacob deGrom, who battled through several injuries last year to go 7-8 with a 3.04 ERA. After undergoing season-ending surgery on his ulnar nerve in September, deGrom (0-0) is hoping to be back to full strength for his fourth season at the major league level.

DeGrom's 2017 debut was a promising, as he threw six scoreless innings of two-hit baseball with six strikeouts and a walk against the Braves. Most important, his fastball topped out at 98 mph.

"Last year it was all I could do I felt like to get to 93, 94," he told the New York Post after his Wednesday outing, a game the Mets lost 3-1 to the Braves.

DeGrom has a 4-2 record with a 2.42 ERA in seven career starts against Philadelphia.

A struggling New York offense came up with eight hits in a 5-3 win over the Miami Marlins on Sunday night, just the third time in six games the Mets scored more than two runs. They haven't scored more than six yet this year.

Leadoff hitter Jose Reyes is 1-for-23 (.043). Three others with 20 at-bats or more are hitting .200 or below.

"You've got to go on track records, and we've got a lot of guys with some really, really good track records," Mets skipper Terry Collins said. "I've seen too many times, guys get off to slow starts. ... I think you've just got to continue to run them out there. And I really believe in that. They've got to play to hit."