Written By: The Persian
The upstart Arizona Diamondbacks get set to clash against the New York Mets as they host them in the first of a three-game set inside Chase Field from Phoenix, Arizona.
They toss out the first pitch at 9:40 pm in a massive series for each team. Bookmaker has installed the Mets -110 on the ML.
The Diamondbacks have surged recently, and they are starting to show signs of the team that made a remarkable run into the postseason last season. They are hitting the ball very well and are also starting to get some timely hitting.
They shocked the baseball world last season by making a very deep run into the postseason, and there was a moment this season where it looked like they were going to be an average team, but they have been resilient and have ripped off six straight wins to push their record to
75-56, and now, there are just three games behind the front-running Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the NL West.
They are pushing the Dodgers and have a series with them coming up that could decide the division. On offense, the Diamondbacks are led by several players, including second baseman Ketel Marte, who is battling through an ankle issue. He has been a stud for them this season, smashing 30 home runs -- two off his career-high of 32 -- while driving in 81 runs, and he is batting .298.
The Diamondbacks have hit 160 home runs as a team. They will hand the ball over to Eduardo Rodriguez, who is 2-0 with an ERA of 3.94.
Give the Mets credit because it looked like their season was about to go down the tubes. They have hung in there, and they have had some dramatic wins lately. They have also shown they can fight through adversity.
Offensively, they have several sluggers in their lineup, and they are led by Pete Alonso, who has smashed a team-high 27 home runs, which is also tied for the team lead with the surging Francisco Lindor, who has come on of late and is pushing himself into the NL MVP conversation.
Lindor has driven in 78 runs and is batting .245 on the season. He has carried the Mets the last month or so, and if they secure one of the NL Wild Card spots, they can be a very dangerous team because of that 1-2 punch.
They will hand the ball over to Sean Manaea, who has a record of 9-5 and an ERA of 3.48. He has impressively fanned 138 batters in 137 innings of work.
The Diamondbacks are 5-0 in their last five games and 5-0 in their last five games against the number. They are also 37-31 in their road games against the spread. The totals have gone over in three out of their last five games, too, and the totals have gone over in 38 out of their last 63 games at home. The Mets are 3-2 in their last five games and 3-2 in their last five games against the spread. They are also 32-31 in their road games against the number. The totals have gone over in two out of their last five games.
