Florida-born righty Sam Dyson makes the first start of his brief big league career on Monday night when the Miami Marlins visit Citizens Bank Field for the first of three games with the Philadelphia Phillies.
A draft pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in 2008, Dyson reached the majors with Toronto last season and made two relief appearances before he was waived and ultimately selected by the Marlins on Jan. 30.
He split the early portion of 2013 between Single-, Double- and Triple-A, going a combined 4-11 with three teams while posting a respectable 2.67 earned run average across 22 appearances - 21 starts.
His Marlins debut came with a two-inning relief stint at Washington on Aug. 29 and has since been followed by a pair of three-inning outings against Washington and Atlanta.
In eight overall innings, he's surrendered four runs on nine hits while walking no one and striking out four.
He's opposed by veteran Philadelphia lefty Cliff Lee, who aims for a fourth consecutive win since last losing in mid-August.
The Arkansas native was 10-6 on the season after dropping a 4-0 decision to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he's since gone 3-0 in five starts while paring his ERA from 3.19 to 2.97.
In the most recent outing, against San Diego on Sept. 11, Lee allowed two runs on five hits in the Phillies' 4-2 triumph.
In nine career meetings with the Marlins, he's 4-1 with a 2.30 ERA in 62 2/3 innings.
On Sunday in New York, Travis d'Arnaud ended an afternoon of offensive futility in the 12th inning, with his ground ball RBI single lifting the Mets over the Marlins, 1-0.
New York had loaded the bases against Zach Phillips (0-1) with no outs in the inning, but it was up to d'Arnaud after Zach Lutz and Andrew Brown each grounded into force outs at home plate. On the third pitch he saw from Ryan Webb, d'Arnaud grounded one just past the reach of shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria to bring home the winning run.
The Marlins had plenty of chances, but were a brutal 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position and stranded 11 men on base. They left a runner at second in the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth innings.
In Washington, Wilson Ramos finished 4-for-4 with a home run and five RBI as the Nationals downed Philadelphia, 11-2, in the rubber match of a three-game set.
Roger Bernadina doubled twice and scored once for the Phillies, who lost for only the third time in their last nine, with Kevin Frandsen and Chase Utley knocking in a run each. Tyler Cloyd (2-5) was torched for 10 hits and five runs over four- plus frames.
The Phillies won nine of the first 13 games with the Marlins this season, a year after winning the 2012 season series, 10-8.
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