New York Mets at Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Preview/Prop Picks
07 September 2022
Time: 12:35 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: NY Mets 14.946; Pittsburgh 14.071
Dunkel Line & Total: NY Mets by 1; 11
Vegas Line & Total: NY Mets (-263); 8
Dunkel Pick: NY Mets (-263); Over
An uncharacteristic game from the New York Mets saw them lose 8-2 last night. The loss isn’t necessarily surprising but who they lost to is. As they come off the loss last night to the Pittsburgh Pirates, they prepare to face them again in the first game of a double header.
This time, the Mets are going to pull out all the stops to secure a win. They’ve got one of their best on the mound to make sure of it.
This season, the Pittsburgh Pirates have a record of 50-84, ranking last in the NL Central. They secured a big win over the Mets last night, which they can hold onto. What would be more impressive is if they could do it twice.
They’re playing at home, which should provide a morale boost, but they still need to play well. Dealing with the Mets batters won’t be as easy as it was.
New York Mets: Mets will start the 12-7 SP Chris Bassitt
As the Mets try to bounce back from yesterday’s loss, they’ll send out SP Chris Bassitt. Bassitt has a 12-7 record this season with an ERA of 3.32. Through 154.1 innings, he’s thrown 143 strikeouts and has only allowed 15 home runs.
He should be able to adequately deal with the Pittsburgh batters. There’s only one to really look out for, however, CF Bryan Reynolds.
Bassitt will also need help from his own batting group, which struggled yesterday. After putting up only two runs, the Mets need a lot more from their batters. As a team, the Mets have an average of .256, ranking seventh in the league.
They also rank seventh in runs (628) and third in on-base percentage (.327). If they can put this all together, they should be able to get a win.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Pirates won’t go down without a fight
Although the Mets are the better team on paper, the Pirates won’t go down easy. They have a few bright spots on their team, including Oneil Cruz. Cruz has hit 13 home runs this season but has an awful batting average of .213.
Bryan Reynolds has an average of .254 and leads the team with 21 home runs. The biggest problem for the Pirates is they don’t have good pitching.
On the mound tonight is Duane Underwood Jr, who has a 1-5 record this season with a 4.60 ERA. You have to take into account with the team that he’s facing today.
It won’t be a good showing for the Pirates with Underwood on the mound. This is especially true as he faces Mets batters such as Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil.
New York Mets at Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Pick
Although the Pirates were able to secure a win yesterday, we think it goes the opposite way today. Their main problem isn’t batting, of which they have a .220 team average. The real trouble for Pittsburgh starts on the mound, where Duane Underwood Jr. will get the start.
Underwood against Bassitt gives the Mets a huge advantage here. They’re starting one of their best pitchers and have a much better batting lineup. Look for the Mets to get a win on the road and increase their record to 86-51.
DunkelIndex Free Pick: New York Mets (-263), OVER
Prop Picks
NY Mets (+115) OVER 5.5 Runs
Pittsburgh is allowing 5.06 runs per 9 innings on defense, which ranks No. 27 in MLB. That average increases to 5.27 runs per 9 innings at home. Scores have gone OVER in 10 of the Pirates’ last 17 home games.
With Dunkel predicting a New York victory by the score of 6-5, take the Mets (+115) to finish OVER their Vegas team total of 5.5 runs against the Pirates.
Oneil Cruz (+125) OVER 0.5 Runs Scored
Cruz has scored 29 runs in 62 games played since being called up from the minors. The Pittsburgh shortstop has scored 3 runs in 17 a-bats with a OBP of .353 in September.
With Dunkel predicting the final score going OVER the Vegas run total, take Cruz (+125) to finish OVER 0.5 runs scored versus the Mets.
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