Are the Phillies back? It sure seems like they are. This may be the best series we’ve seen so far in quite some time. Now, the Phillies go for the series win at 1:40pm today.
After a great win in extra innings on Friday night, the Phillies fell to the Mets 1-0 yesterday. Despite an insane Aaron Nola outing, where he went eight innings of one-run ball (retiring 17 straight at one point), Philadelphia couldn’t solve Jacob deGrom and the Mets bullpen.
Probable Pitchers:
Phillies Zack Wheeler (11-5, 2.63 ERA, 137 SO) vs. Mets Chris Bassitt (9-7, 3.39 ERA, 129 SO)
Zack Wheeler takes the mound for Philadelphia today and is coming off four straight quality starts of his own. Most recently, he took the Marlins on for six innings of one-run ball, only allowing five hits as well. In 2022, Wheeler has a 1.69 ERA in two starts against New York, but the Phillies have lost both of those games.
The former Met has faced his former team 10 times since joining Philadelphia in 2019. He has an outstanding 2.48 ERA in those appearances, including one complete game. That complete game was the Roy Halladay number induction ceremony at Citizens Bank Park almost a year ago to the day.
On the flip side, Chris Bassitt will get the nod for New York today. Bassitt has been having a pretty good year for the Mets so far. He’s faced the Phillies twice this season, which are the only two times he’s seen them in his career. In those games, he’s accumulated a stellar 1.54 ERA on seven total hits allowed in those two games.
Betting Preview and Picks
The Phillies may have their work cut out for them today if Bassitt continues that trend, but their offense is due for a good game. They have one of the hottest lineups in baseball, have scored the eighth-most runs in the entire league (sixth in NL), and have a top-11 team batting average. Now that they’re facing a pitcher that isn’t Scherzer or deGrom, they need to put some runs on the board.
Phillies Lineup
Nick Castellanos has the best numbers (sample size influence) against Bassitt in his career, in comparison to the rest of the Phillies’ starting lineups. When facing Bassitt, Castellanos is 7-for-20 with a homer. After making the third out with the tying run on third base in the ninth inning yesterday, let’s hope Casty comes out with a purpose and a vengeance today.
I’ll personally be backing the Phillies moneyline today, and likely parlaying it with Castellanos to get a hit. Given the history, and the Phillies offense, I love this bet. A $10 bet on that two-leg parlay would win you $18 on Fanduel.
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Photo Credit: AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
