Subscribe
Follow Us
It is an NL East showdown as the New York Mets head to the Nation's Capitals to face the Washington Nationals. It is time to continue our MLB odds series with a Mets-Nationals prediction, pick, and how-to watch.
The Mets have now lost five straight series for the first time in a decade. It started with losing two out of three against the Nationals, where they managed to score just ten runs in the series, with nine of them coming in one game. Meanwhile, the Nationals put out 17 runs in the three games to take the series. The Nationals have won six of their last nine, and do not look like the team that could have lost 100 games this year.
Here are the Mets-Nationals MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Mets-Nationals Odds
New York Mets: -1.5 (+136)
Washington Nationals: +1.5 (-164)
Over: 9 (-104)
Under: 9 (-118)
How To Watch Mets vs. Nationals
TV: WPIX/MASN
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 7:05 PM ET/ 4:05 PM PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Mets Could Cover The Spread
Scoring for this team needs to start with Pete Alonso. He now has 13 home runs on the season, which is first in the majors. He also has 31 RBIs which is 5th in the bigs. Today, Alonso will face left-handed pitcher MacKenzie Gore. Against lefties on the year, he has hit .271 with five home runs and 14 RBIs. In his last series against the Nats though, he has just two hits in 13 at-bats. They both game in the victory over the Nationals as he drove in two runs. Brandon Nimmo was one of those that was driven in by Alonso. He has been hitting just .273 on the month, but he has an OBP of .347. On the year, he is tied for 12th in batting average in the majors.
On the mound for the Mets will be Tylor Megill. Megill is just 3-2 on the year with a 4.33 ERA. He has given up three or more runs in each of his last four starts after a good start to the year. In his first three starts, he gave up just four runs in a combined 16 innings while striking out 13 batters. If Megill can regain that form today, it could be big news for the Mets.
Beyond Megill, the bullpen will be used in this game. The bullpen has been solid on the year, led by Drew Smith, Adam Ottavino, Brooks Raley, and David Robertson. Raley is currently on the IL, but the other three have been great. Drew Smith has seven holds on the year and has a 1.93 ERA in his 14 innings of work. He is striking 12.2 batters per nine innings as well. Ottavino has a slightly higher ERA due to a rough performance against the Tigers on May 3rd. Still, he has not given up a run in his last three outings and only one player even has a hit. Finally, David Robertson has been lights out. HJe has a .59 ERA with a .85 WHIP with seven saves.
Why The Nationals Could Cover The Spread
To start today's game, the Nationals will be sending MacKenzie Gore to the mound. He is having a great season, sitting at 3-2 with a 3.65 ERA. He has only given up three or more earned runs twice in seven starts. Meanwhile, his last outing against the Mets was one of his best of the year. In six innings Gore gave up just one earned run and struck out ten. If Gore can reproduce that outing, the Nationals will win.
There are no major standouts on the offensive side of the ball this year for the Nationals. It has truly been a collective effort, but if there is one it may be Alex Call. Call is just hitting .230 this year, but he has 16 RBIS and an on-base percentage of .329. Call has also been good in the clutch. He has a great batting average with runners in scoring position this year, and that is where he is collecting most of his hits. Jose Meneses is also heating u0. He has had multiple hits in three of his last four games and is hitting .293 on the month. Even better, he has scored eight times this month so far. He is also a better hitter against right-handed pitching. He is hitting .308 against righties this year.
A large majority of the Nationals lineup has found their success on the season against a lefty. Six different active players have a batting average over .300 against left-handed batting this year for the Nationals. This might be an issue today facing Megill. Still, Kibert Ruiz and Meneses have been great against righties. Lane Thomas has also not been bad, hitting .245 with eight RBIs. If they can get a few good hits, they should be in line for the win.
Final Mets-Nationals Prediction & Pick
These are two teams that seem to be going in opposite directions. The Nationals are playing solid baseball, while the Mets are playing horridly. Megill is going to have to be at his best today, but overall, the best of Megill has not been better than the best of Gore. Overall, Gore has been better, and with both teams struggling to hit, that may make the difference.
Final Mets-Nationals Prediction & Pick: Nationals +1.5 (-164)
