It was bound to come sooner rather than later as the Philadelphia Phillies lost their first game of the season on Tuesday.
The New York Mets were able to break out in the final five innings to record the victory, handing the Phillies their first loss in five games of 2021.
Another quality contest is expected on Wednesday as the two National League East teams meet again. It’s the third game of a 19-game series this season and we’re expecting it to be hard-fought throughout.
Phillies Hoping Nola Can Get Them Back On Track
Aaron Nola will start Game 3 of this series for the Philadelphia Phillies after taking a no decision in his season debut.
He pitched 6.2 innings and allowed six hits and one home run. However, he recorded six strikeouts and it was a solid season opener for the 27-year-old.
Nola faced Atlanta and didn’t get the decision because the game went into extra innings. He gave them a solid platform to work with and Philadelphia will be hoping for something similar on Wednesday.
“Felt good to pretty much get seven ups and downs,” Nola told Delco Times, “and first of all, an unbelievable win and way to take that first game of the season.”
“He was great,” manager Joe Girardi countered. “This is an extremely dangerous lineup. We saw what this lineup did consistently last year. This was a team like I’ve said a number of times, that was one game away from the World Series. To be able to hold a lineup down like that, that was some really good pitching.”
Philadelphia is the online betting favorite and Nola is a big reason why.
Mets Grab Momentum After 8-4 Victory
Expectations are high for the New York Mets this season and they showed why on Tuesday.
The 8-4 win over Philadelphia was a tidy outing and it could kick-start the season for the Mets, who had dropped their opening game 5-3.
New York got good production from Pete Alfonso and Dominic Smith on Tuesday. Both players had two RBIs each and Alonso is a player with MVP qualities.
The Polar Bear has made a fast start to 2021 and he became the fastest player in history to reach 70 home runs on Tuesday.
It’s just another notch in the belt for Alonso and he will look to build on momentum throughout the season.
Peterson To Pitch For Mets
David Peterson earned the starting pitching job on Wednesday. The 25-year-old went 6-2 last season, which was T7 in the league.
He’s an underrated pitcher who recorded 40 strikeouts last year and his ERA was a respectable 3.44. Bettors are getting a good price for Peterson on Wednesday and he should give New York an excellent winning hope.
His spring training form reads well after giving up just two runs from his last 13 innings. He also recorded 10 strikeouts from six innings against Atlanta last month, which was a quality effort.
Mets vs Phillies Betting Trends
Philadelphia has many positive betting trends in its favor, which could explain the opening of MLB lines with bookmakers.
Philadelphia Phillies:
- Phillies are 5-1 in their last 6 vs National League East.
- Phillies are 11-2 in their last 13 games as a home favorite.
- Phillies are 7-3 in their last 10 games vs a left-handed pitcher.
New York Mets:
- Mets are 5-12 in the last 17 meetings in Philadelphia.
- Mets are 5-9 in the last 14 meetings.
- Mets are 1-4 in their last 5 vs National League East.
- Mets are 1-4 in their last 5 road games.
- Mets are 0-6 in their last 6 games vs a right-handed starter.
Mets vs Phillies Game Pick
We expect a very close game between two evenly matched teams. However, with Aaron Nola at the helm, we’re going with the Philadelphia Phillies.
They are coming off their first loss of the season but we don’t see that as a negative. It was a matter of time before Philadelphia lost, so it could free them up now.
Philadelphia has a stacked offensive team, which includes Bryce Harper, former Yankee Didi Gregorius, and J.T Realmuto.
