NEW YORK -- Long before the skies parted and the Phillies dropped a soggy 10-5 decision to the Mets on Saturday, Philadelphia manager Gabe Kapler stood in the visitors' dugout in Citi Field to explain why, for the second time in a week, "our best defense isn't on the field to start the game."
Kapler's reasoning was logical, but not without risk. By injecting Justin Bour into the starting lineup, Kapler gave his inconsistent offense the benefit of an extra left-handed weapon opposite Noah Syndergaard. And with Maikel Franco (wrist) not fully healthy, he could do so without choosing between Bour and Carlos Santana, his hottest hitter. Even with the byproduct of pushing Santana to third -- where before this week, he hadn't started in four years -- Kapler felt he'd fulfilled "our first obligation -- to score some runs off a really good starting pitcher."
Which is why it was with something akin to irony how the two hits that sank the Phillies -- long before they scratched a run off Syndergaard -- rolled in the directions they did. In fairness, few third basemen likely come close to the bases-clearing double Tomas Nido topped past Santana and down the third-base line in the second, which scored the Mets' first three runs off Zach Eflin. The triple Jeff McNeil lashed past a diving Bour in the third was at least comparably difficult: It also led to the Mets' next three runs, putting the game out of reach -- no pun intended -- not 18 outs in.

But together, the plays brought into focus what has become Kapler's main conundrum as his team has lagged toward the finish line: what balance to strike with a roster talented, but with some redundant parts.
"Going up against a pitcher like Syndergaard, going up tomorrow against a pitcher like [Jacob] deGrom, you have to find a way to score runs," Kapler said after the game. "Sometimes that means making that trade-off, putting your best offensive team on the field."
Friday, Kapler basically started an offensive unit and replaced it with a defensive one when the Phillies took a lead -- shifting lines almost like in hockey. Twice now, he has deployed Saturday's imperfect alignment for a full game, in search of runs. Twice now, Philadelphia has lost.
It should be noted that the Phillies entered play with the fewest Defensive Runs Saved in the Majors. It should also be noted that Saturday, they hit.
"In Miami, we weren't able to do anything with the offensive [alignment]," Kapler said. "Certainly tonight was a different story."
Santana, Bour and Wilson Ramos (another offense-first choice) combined to notch five hits. The Phillies reached base 17 times against Syndergaard, the highest single-start total in the righty's career. But the three double plays they hit into went a long way toward their 14-hit attack yielding just five runs (four off Syndergaard, who left after Cesar Hernandez lined a comebacker off his side in the seventh).

But the season-high six runs Eflin allowed made it so by the time Jose Bautista struck out with the bases loaded to end that frame, the tying run still sat in the on-deck circle. McNeil's triple set the stage, but it was Todd Frazier's three-run homer that ended Eflin's night and continued the Jekyll-and-Hyde nature of his season. The right-hander was 7-2 with a 2.97 ERA in his first 11 starts. He is 2-5 with a 6.26 ERA in his 10 starts since.
"The definition of the past couple outings has been purely execution," Eflin said. "I haven't been doing a good job of executing my pitches when I need to. When you don't execute pitches, they put a six-spot in three innings. But I don't think I'm far off."

The Phillies have dropped eight of Eflin's last 10 starts, and 18 of 28 games overall. Philadelphia fell to 3 1/2 games back in the National League East after the Braves beat the D-backs. The Phillies made it so they have to beat deGrom Sunday to claim their first series win since early August. Expect the search for offense to continue at least another day.
"We'll think about doing it again tomorrow," Kapler said.
MOMENT THAT MATTERED
Back in Flushing this weekend for the first time since being claimed off waivers from the Mets last month, Bautista pinch-hit with a chance to swing the Phillies much closer against Jerry Blevins in the seventh. The bases-loaded at-bat between former teammates came after a string of singles chipped the Mets' lead to five, the final one a 103.7-mph liner from Hernandez that sent Syndergaard to the ground, then the showers. When Blevins entered, Kapler countered with Bautista, who worked the count full before whiffing on a pitch over his head. That marked the Phillies' last real chance to salvage the night.

SOUND SMART
It took until the sixth for the Phillies to get to Syndergaard. But Rhys Hoskins did it in style, turning a 97.5-mph 0-2 pitch from Syndergaard around and into the left-field seats. Hoskins' 29th homer marked his 15th of the year with two strikes -- only Jesus Aguilar of the Brewers (17) has more. It also snapped a 49-inning homerless streak for Syndergaard.

EICKHOFF RETURNS
Making his season debut, right-hander Jerad Eickhoff came on in place of Eflin and allowed a run in the fourth inning. The outing marked the first career relief appearance for Eickhoff, who missed most of the summer after multiple setbacks prolonged his return from a lat strain he sustained in Spring Training. Eickhoff was built up to 89 pitches during his final rehab stint, making him the likely candidate should the Phillies need a spot starter or to shake up their rotation.

HE SAID IT
"I have nothing but confidence in Eflin. He's going to go out there and make his next start. I wouldn't be surprised if we rode him through the end of September." -- Kapler
UP NEXT
The Phillies will need to go through deGrom (8-8, 1.68 ERA) to capture their first series win in more than a month when this three-game set concludes Sunday from Citi Field. Vince Velasquez (9-10, 4.10) gets the ball opposite deGrom, the favorite in the NL Cy Young Award field that also includes Aaron Nola. First pitch is set for 1:10 p.m. ET.