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(Sports Network) - Two teams struggling to maintain their division leads square off tonight when the Philadelphia Phillies welcome the Arizona Diamondbacks to town for the first of three games at Citizens Bank Park.

Philadelphia is clinging to a 1 1/2-game lead over the Florida Marlins and New York Mets in the NL East, while the Diamondbacks maintain a one-game advantage over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the West.

The Phillies, though, seem to have gotten back on the right track after winning the final two games of their three-game affair with the St. Louis Cardinals. On Thursday, Ryan Howard homered twice and drove in three runs, leading Philadelphia to a 4-1 win in the rubber match of the series.

Howard, who has belted eight home runs with 18 RBI during a 13-game hitting streak, now leads the majors with 27 home runs and sits atop the NL with 83 RBI. He has also driven in 10 of Philadelphia's last 23 runs.

Jamie Moyer (8-6) tossed seven strong innings, scattering seven hits and allowing only one run with four strikeouts and two walks to pick up the win.

Chase Utley knocked in the other run for the Phillies, whose back-to-back wins have come on the heels of dropping four straight.

Kyle Kendrick gets the call for Philadelphia tonight, as he tries for his ninth win of the season. Kendrick, who is 8-3 with a 4.39 ERA, received a no- decision on Sunday against the New York Mets, but pitched well, giving up just a run and eight hits in six innings of his team's 4-2 loss.

Kendrick received a no-decision in his only other start against the D'Backs back on May 7, allowing three runs and 10 hits in six innings of a 5-4 win.

Arizona will counter with veteran lefty Doug Davis, who is 3-4 with a 3.74 ERA. Davis was tagged with the loss on Saturday against the San Diego Padres, as he allowed three runs and seven hits in eight innings.

Davis has faced the Phillies six times in his career and is 2-1 with a 2.93 ERA.

Arizona comes into this series after winning two of three from the Washington Nationals. The D'Backs won Thursday's rubber match, as Stephen Drew went 3- for-6 with two doubles and the go-ahead RBI in the top of the 11th inning, lifting Arizona to a 7-5 win at Nationals Park.

After blowing a two-run lead in the ninth and a three-run lead in the 10th, the Diamondbacks pushed two across in the decisive 11th frame to finish off a gut-wrenching victory.

Washington reliever Luis Ayala (1-5) hit Augie Ojeda to begin the final frame. After moving up on a sacrifice, Ojeda crossed for the game-winning run when Drew punched a double to the opposite field wall in left. Drew was thrown out at home on a Conor Jackson single, but Chad Tracy added an insurance run with a run-scoring base hit of his own.

Chad Qualls (2-6), who recorded the final two outs of the 10th, didn't let a third lead slip away, as he mowed down the Nationals in order to finish off the tough win.

Jackson and Tracy had three-hit nights for Arizona, which has won three of four.

Arizona has split four games with the Phillies this season after winning five of the six matchups a year ago.