Howard, Phillies Destroy Mets, Rack Up Some April Records

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Not a bad start to the homestand... The Phillies opened up the Mets' pitching and bled it for 10 runs while Vance Worley threw six shutout innings on their way to a 10-3 win. The Phils have now scored double-digit runs against the Mets in three straight contests and lead the season series, 3-1.

Ryan Howard homered twice, including a grand slam, which both tied him with Del Ennis for second on the all-time Phillies home run list at 259 and extended his record for most grand slams as a Phillie (10). Howard also now holds the team record for RBI in the month of April (27), which is pretty amazing considering how well he slugs later in the season (he already owns the Phillies' RBI records for August [41] and September [32]), and the fact that Chase Utley hasn't played a single game.

Placido Polanco scratched an April record of his own, notching his 39th hit in the month, most ever by a Phillie in April. Polly raised his average to .390. Three. Ninety.

Worley looked very good in his season debut, getting out of an error-induced jam in the first and staying settled through six shutout innings. Dating back to last season, he hasn't given up a run in 16 innings, per John Clark on the postgame show. Vance Refrigeration!

Worley walked four, but struck out five and allowed just two hits. He even notched his first MLB hit. Mike Stutes and Danys Baez each picked up a scoreless relief inning, but David Herndon shat the shutout bed, allowing a pair of homers and three total runs in the ninth. Herndon's April reminds me of the Padres reliever that Barney Coopersmith's wife leaves him for in My Blue Heaven. Fans, what are we going to do about David Herndon?

Jimmy and Benny each contributed a pair of hits, with Francisco knocking in a pair of runs in the fifth. One of Polanco's two hits on the night also plated a pair.

Always good to see the Mets get trounced, but regardless of the opponent, it's encouraging to see the runs piling up again and the Phils take a series opener.

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