New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies Betting Preview
Sunday Night Baseball features a matchup of National League East rivals as the New York Mets (10-11) square off with the Philadelphia Phillies (13-14). The Phillies will host this one at Citizens Bank Park, with the first pitch scheduled for 7:08 pm ET.
This will be the rubber match of a three-game series as the Phillies took the first one on Friday, 2-1, and the Mets took Saturday’s contest 5-4.
In the win on Saturday, outfielder Michael Conforto hit a game-winning home run in the ninth inning off of Hector Neris to break a 4-4 tie. Edwin Diaz notched the save in the bottom of the ninth.
After giving up four runs in the first inning, Phillies’ starting pitcher Zach Wheeler regrouped to go seven innings allowing only those four runs. Alec Bohm hit his third home run of the season in the loss.
This is basically a pick’em game as both teams’ moneyline sit at -108. Despite that, the runline features the Phillies +1.5. The over/under for total runs is 8.5.
Pitching Matchup
Sunday night, the Mets will send southpaw David Peterson (1-3, 5.59 ERA) to the mound. In five games, this will actually be the third time he is facing the Phillies. The first time he saw them, he gave up six runs in four innings, but he bounced back the next time, giving up only a single run over six innings.
The Phillies will counter with righty Zach Eflin (1-1, 3.58 ERA). His last outing was the worst of the season as he went 6.2 innings, allowing five runs and nine hits to the Cardinals. Prior to that, he had given up just eight runs in four starts.
By The Numbers
Offensively, both of these teams have ranked near the bottom in the majors. The Phillies rank 26th in scoring, averaging 3.73 runs per game. The Mets fall to 29th, averaging just 2.90 runs per game.
Defensively, it is the Mets who have the advantage. They rank seventh in runs allowed per game at just 3.60. The Phillies rank 17th, allowing an average of 4.31 runs per game.
Phillies Hope For Home Field Advantage
While the Phillies have struggled on the road going 4-9 thus far, they have actually been pretty good at Citizens Bank Park. Heading into Sunday’s contest, they are 9-5 at home and look to make it double digits in the win column against the Mets.
Leading the way offensively for Philadelphia has been Rhys Hoskins. Despite hitting just .231/.272/.519, he is leading the team in home runs (eight) and second in runs batted in (14).
The Phillies are hopeful to have two of their sluggers back in the lineup Sunday. Bryce Harper has been out after taking a hit by pitch to the face, and catcher J.T. Realmuto has been out with a hand injury. There is a good chance both suit up for this one.
Mets Hope Saturday’s Win Wakes Up The Bats
Prior to Saturday’s five-run game, the Mets had struggled to produce anything. In fact, in the three games prior to Saturday, they averaged just 0.67 runs per game. They are hoping that the win on Saturday can get them rolling offensively.
Leading the team on offense has been first baseman, Pete Alonso. Right now, the slugger leads the team in both home runs (five) and runs batted in (13). In addition to those numbers, he is hitting .263/.337/.500.
The Mets hope Michael Conforto’s bat gets hot after hitting the game-winner on Saturday. He is hitting just .229/.341/.400 with two home runs and seven runs batted in.
The biggest concern for the Mets, though, has to be shortstop Francisco Lindor. After signing the mega-contract, he is hitting just .182/.297/.234 with a single home run and three runs batted in over 77 at bats.
Taking Philadelphia On The Runline
Until the Mets prove that their bats can stay awake, it is really tough to bet on them right now. Peterson has been good, and he was really good in his last start against Philadelphia, but the question still remains if he can get any run support.
Especially if the Phillies have Harper and Realmuto back in the lineup, this seems like a really nice opportunity to bet them at -108. At very worst, taking the Phillies +1.5 on the runline is a really strong bet.
