An exciting pitching matchup is the story on Sunday night when the Philadelphia Phillies visit the New York Mets.
The pregame narrative: Even though I’m expecting a low-scoring game with Zack Wheeler and Tylor Megill on the mound, I like the price on Pete Alonso’s hits prop. To back the starting pitchers, I’m also eyeing the under on the total for the first five innings.
Check out my Phillies vs. Mets picks for Sunday Night Baseball on Sept. 22.
Phillies vs. Mets picks
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Best Bet: Alonso over 0.5 hits (-138)
Alonso has a pretty good history against Wheeler so I’m willing to take this risk.
The “Polar Bear” is 10-for-31 (.323) off the Phillies’ ace with five walks and just six strikeouts. That last part is nice to see for the swing-happy first baseman.
Additionally, Alonso is hot right now. He has hits in seven of his last nine games and is hitting .333 over that span.
This line was set with the pitching matchup heavily in mind and I get that. But with the history Alonso has vs. his counterpart, my interest is piqued.
Key stat: Alonso has a hit in seven of the last 10 games against Wheeler.
Quick pick
Under 3.5 runs – first five innings (-118): Consider this as best bet No. 2.
Wheeler has been mentioned briefly already but I want to get back to him. He has a 2.56 ERA and 0.95 WHIP.
Philly’s starter has given up two or fewer runs in nine straight starts and has pitched over six innings per outing during that time.
Now let’s transition to Megill. The righty is on a roll right now, giving up one or fewer runs in four of his past five starts.
His history against the Phillies’ lineup is encouraging, too. The current offence has 15 hits in 72 at-bats (.208) with 20 strikeouts.
My prediction is this game ends up being a bit of a pitching duel and this is the best way to take advantage.
Picks made at 2:15 p.m. ET 09/22/2024.
Spencer is a true sports junkie. A graduate of the Sports Journalism program at Centennial College, he first joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2023. He is now a contributing writer. He loves finding the edge to bet on in all sports but has a deep passion for the NBA and UFC. Previous stops include Sportsnet.