Jonathon Niese (7-9, 3.46 ERA) and Charlie Morton (7-4, 4.48 ERA) take the hill in the second of a three-game series between the New York Mets (63-53) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (67-46) at Citi Field. The Pirates won the last game 3-2 and Pittsburgh leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 15 and can be seen on RTPT and WPIX.
Niese pitched 7.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering two runs and striking out five in a 4-2 win over the Rockies. Yoenis Cespedes (.294, 70 Rs, 20 HRs, 69 RBIs, 4 SBs) continued his strong play yesterday, going 3 for 5 with one run, one home run, and one RBI. Morton went 5.0 innings, surrendering five runs, striking out six and walking three in a 13-6 defeat to the Dodgers in his most recent start. Jung Ho Kang (.290, 43 Rs, 9 HRs, 40 RBIs, 5 SBs) went 1 for 5 yesterday.
New York is a narrow -113 favorite at home against Pittsburgh. The Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at eight runs for this matchup. The Mets have recorded an overall money line of +1,049 and have shown high-level performance as a favorite this season with a record of 49-16. New York is an impressive 8-1 as the favorite over its last 10 games. The Mets have seen an uptick in scoring as of late, averaging 5.9 runs during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 3.8 runs per game. The Mets lead the MLB in batting average with a phenomenal team average of .238. New York’s pitching staff has been doing better against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, only allowing an average of 2.5 runs per game, well under their season average of 3.5. The Mets are the top team in the league at limiting hits and walks to their opponents, recording a WHIP of 1.15 so far this season.
Over in the other dugout, in contrast to an encouraging overall money line (+1,187), Pittsburgh has an unimpressive 13-20 record when playing as the underdog. Pittsburgh’s pitching staff is one of the top in the NL, with a 3.28 ERA.
The Pirates have the edge in the season series, 4-0. The Mets have a 50-42 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Morton takes the mound. Niese (LHP) will be on the hill against the Pirates, who have a 12-9 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – NYM, O/U – Over
Notes
Pittsburgh has won 46% (21-25) of its games when leading after 7 innings. However, New York has won 58% (25-18) of its games when taking a late lead.
The Pirates are coming into this game after allowing one walk during their last outing. The Mets have an 11-22 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
When they outhit their opponents, the Pirates are 46-6. The Mets have a 44-5 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 24th, New York is near the bottom of the league in runs, scoring 434 this season. Pittsburgh ranks in the top half at 14th with 478.
Ranking 21st, Pittsburgh is near the bottom of the league in walks, notching 298 this season. New York ranks in the bottom half at 17th with 320.
The Mets are 40-20 when they hit at least one home run. The Pirates perform similarly when they hit one or more homers with a 43-22 record.
