Ted Lilly Makes His Season Debut in NYC; Dodgers Draw Matt Harvey

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Ted Lilly vs. Matt Harvey (4-0, 0.93)

Dodgers Lineup: vs. New York

Schumaker 7M.Ellis 4Gonzalez 3Kemp 8Ethier 9Hairston 5A.J. Ellis 2Punto 6Lilly 1

On Tuesday, the Dodgers announced that Chad Billingsley will undergo Tommy John surgery this Wednesday and be out the entirety of 2013. The Dodgers went out and played an offensively charged game against the Mets during a bitter cold night at Citi Field. Mark Ellis‘s two homeruns and heroics led the Dodgers to the 7-2 victory. Mark Ellis looked like a captain on Tuesday evening. Often under the radar, the second base specialist is quietly having a great season thus far. We can’t forget that Ellis had that horrific injury to his leg last season on a take-out slide.

The Dodgers will face highly touted Mets pitcher Matt Harvey who has yet to lose a game this season. Photo: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The real story tonight is the season debut of Ted Lilly. Lilly will be activated for Wednesday’s game, and we can anticipate that Tim Federowicz will be optioned back down to AAA-Albuquerque. Lilly only pitched in 9 innings during Spring Training going 0-2 with a 14.00 ERA in 4 games. He’s then pitched 17 innings in the minors on rehab assignments with Rancho Cucamonga and Albuquerque.

Last season Lilly only made 8 starts and had a 5-1 record with a 3.14 ERA in 48 2/3 innings pitched. He missed the beginning of the 2012 season with neck stiffness, and then finally had to be disabled due to left shoulder inflammation causing him to miss the remainder of the season. The injury occurred right after his solid start to the season. The question is can Lilly stay healthy? Or has the 37-year old’s rustiness taken its toll?

In his career against the Mets, Lilly is 2-2 with a 3.68 ERA in 7 games. He will be countered by Matt Harvey, the big right-hander. Harvey is 4-0 with a 0.93 ERA in his first 4 starts. Last time out against Washington, Harvey picked up the win while going 7 innings. He allowed just 1 run on 4 hits while striking out 7 and walking 3. He hasn’t allowed more than 1 run in his four starts. The Dodgers have never faced the 24-year old.

Harvey is an exciting young pitcher for the Mets. Check out our brethren Mets Blog Rising Apple’s story on Harvey’s stellar start to the season. Do the Mets have a potential star on their hands?

The game will begin at 4:10 p.m. on KCAL.