New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor and relief pitcher Seth Lugo, left, green one another, next to Pete Alonso (20), Luis Guillorme (13), and Eduardo Escobar (10) following the team’s baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Saturday, May 28, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh)
The NL East leading New York Mets (31-17) are in a position to sweep the Philadelphia Phillies (21-26) on Sunday night. With two wins to start the series, the Mets are now 9.5 games ahead of the third-place Phillies. Sunday’s series finale from Citi Field is set for 7:08 p.m. on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.
The Mets will send RHP Chris Bassitt (4-2, 3.91) to the mound against Phillies RHP Zack Wheeler (3-3, 3.38). The Mets lead the season series 8-3 with a 4-1 record in New York. The Phillies won the season series last year 10-9, and after Sunday’s game, the teams won’t meet again until August 12.
Mets Back to Their Winning Ways
The Mets are 22-18 as the favorites this season with a 15-8 overall home record. They are 25-9 against RHP and 15-7 against NL East opponents. The Mets are 7-3 in their last ten games after losing a series in San Francisco before taking the first two against the Phillies.
In Friday’s 8-6 win, Pete Alonso homered, doubled, and drove in four, while Starling Marte also had two hits. The Mets won 8-2 on Saturday as Jeff McNeil homered and drove in three. Francisco Lindor also drove in three, and Luis Guillorme added three hits to give the Mets two straight wins.
Bassitt has taken three straight no-decisions, allowing 13 runs on 13 hits over 16 ⅔ innings in that span. He has gone just six innings once in the last four starts, and his last win was against the Phillies on May 8. In that outing, he allowed one run on five hits over 5⅔ innings while striking out four.
Bassitt has allowed homers to Nick Castellanos and Jean Segura in his career. Castellanos is 7-for-17 while Segura is 1-for-2. Kyle Schwarber is 3-for-6 against Bassitt, and Bryce Harper is 0-for-3.
Phillies Giving Up a Lot of Runs
The Phillies are 12-8 as the underdog this season and 10-13 overall on the road. They are 13-20 against RHP this season and 6-13 against the NL East. The Phillies have dropped seven of their last ten games, allowing at least six runs in five straight losses.
Garrett Stubbs homered in Friday’s loss, while Alec Bohm, Castellanos, and Odubel Herrera all had two hits. Castellanos had two more hits on Saturday, as did Harper. J.T. Realmuto drove in both runs with a double in the fourth inning and added a single as three players combined for six of Philadelphia’s seven hits.
Harper leads the Phillies with ten homers, 32 RBI, and a .317 batting average. Schwarber also has ten home runs but is hitting just .185, while Rhys Hoskins has seven homers with a .220 average.
Wheeler has won two straight starts and three straight decisions. He won at Atlanta on Monday, allowing two runs over 6⅔ innings while striking out 10. On the season, he has 51 strikeouts and just ten walks in 45 ⅓ innings of work.
Wheeler faced the Mets on April 12, allowing one run on two hits over 4⅔ innings in a loss. J.D. Davis and Brandon Nimmo have career homers against Wheeler, while Alonso is 7-for-18. McNeil is just 3-for-21 while Marte is 2-for-10, and Lindor is 4-for-14.
Betting Analysis
- Philadelphia Phillies +1.5 run line (-190). -105 moneyline
- New York Mets -1.5 run line (+160). -115 moneyline
- Run Total: 7.5 Over -105. Under -115
The Mets have flat out dominated the Phillies this season, even coming from six runs down in the ninth to win a game earlier this month. New York’s lineup has spread the hits around as well, not relying on one or two bats like the Phillies do. The way this matchup has gone so far this year, the trend is to keep taking the Mets.
Betting Pick: Mets moneyline (-115)
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