NY Mets (3-1) at Philadelphia (2-1)
When: Monday, April 11th 2022
Where: Citizens Bank Park,
Philadelphia, PA
Time: 6:45 ET | TV: MLB.tv
Opening Odds: Philadelphia -140/9
After opening the season against an American League opponent, the Philadelphia Phillies will get their first taste of the rugged NL East on Monday when they host the New York Mets to begin a three-game set. The Phillies had no trouble showing off their newly stacked lineup by scoring 13 runs in back-to-back wins over the Oakland A’s, but were held to just three hits in a 4-1 setback on Sunday. Meanwhile, the Mets came within a few outs of a four-game opening weekend sweep of the Washington Nationals, but couldn’t hold an eighth-inning 2-1 lead in Sunday’s 4-2 loss. New York outscored Washington 17-4 in winning the first three games of the series.
It was still a successful weekend for these two clubs, who are expected to battle the Atlanta Braves all season long for the National League East crown. The Phillies’ Jean Segura, who batted .290 last season and is now in the No. 7 hole in the lineup, accounted for the lone run yesterday with a solo homer in the ninth inning. Segura is hitting .394 with four home runs and five RBIs during a nine-game hitting streak versus New York and is 3-for-10 with a homer against scheduled starter Taijuan Walker. Philadelphia won the 2021 season series 10-9 against the Mets, including 6-of-9 at Citizens Bank Park.
Pitchers: Mets – Taijuan Walker (0-0, 0.00) | Phillies – Ranger Suarez (0-0, 0.00)
Walker did not have a great first season with the Mets in 2021, going 7-11 with a 4.47 ERA in 29 starts. The right-hander had been dealing with right knee soreness this spring after undergoing surgery in January, but had a successful bullpen session on Friday. Walker went 0-2 with a 3.76 ERA in five starts against the Phillies last season.
Suarez successfully went from the bullpen to the rotation last season for the Phillies. After permanently joining the rotation in August, the lefty went 3-2 with a 1.51 ERA in 12 starts, earning him another try in 2022. Suarez went 0-1 with a 1.93 ERA in three appearances against the Mets last season, including a hitless 2.2 innings on Aug. 7.
Both teams beat up two of the worst teams in the league, so there’s not a lot to go on there. I’ll give the edge to the Phillies in this one with Suarez on the mound. He’s one of the more underrated starters in the league right now and should be able to navigate this Mets’ lineup. I expect the Phillies offense to knock Walker around.
Check out who Bobby Babowski has on his Free MLB Picks page for today.
Pick: Phillies -140
