Who would have guessed during the winter that Taijuan Walker would pitch in such a big game near the end of August?

Nobody could have envisioned it for Walker, whose eventual release felt more likely than any appearances of significance. But there he was on Wednesday evening in Flushing, N.Y., jogging to the mound to pitch in a game it felt like the Phillies to win.

The Phillies took the field on Wednesday with a 76-56 record, 20 games over .500 holding a 5.0-game division lead. But these are the Mets at Citi Field, and the combination of that team and its ballpark has become torturous for the Phillies. Factoring in last season's National League Division Series, the Phillies' losing streak at Citi Field was nine games before Wednesday.

That included an embarrassing 13-3 loss on Monday n

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