Mets to host the Giants in a play-in game that will feature the current aces on each team’s pitching staffs on Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. ET.
The New York Mets may have received the blessing of the baseball gods this year by getting to finish the regular season against the Philadelphia Phillies. The Metropolitans were the defending National League champions, so they got a day off before a three game set against the Phillies, a club that was eliminated in spring training.
But a funny thing happened on the way to winning the National League East and securing home field throughout the division and championship series, like they did a year ago. The Washington Nationals took the division by eight games and the Mets were left to scramble for the crumbs, otherwise known as the Wild Card.
The San Francisco Giants, on the other hand, were expected to win it all simply based on history. There was this even-year thing going on in the Bay area and fans simply believed all their team had to do was toss their gloves on the field and they would be returning to the postseason to add another piece of hardware to their trophy case.
For a good portion of the season it looked like this odd-even thing had some merit, but as it turned out their hated rival, the Dodgers, bypassed them leaving them looking for the same crumbs the Mets wanted. There was one problem, it was a three-way race in the waning days of the season, and it would come down to the final two days to settle things.
The Mets pulled off a mini-miracle by clinching a Wild Card spot on Saturday and at the same time nabbing home field for that single playoff contest. They did it even though they lost three-fifths of their opening day rotation to injuries, and with last year’s hitting hero, Yoenis Céspedes, nursing injuries down the stretch.
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The Giants had to battle right down to the final out to get in. They ran off four straight wins, three coming against the Dodgers to close out the season. They managed to hold off the Cardinals and now they are faced with one last game to see if they can continue their even-year prowess.
On Wednesday, the Giants will go with veteran lefty Madison Bumgarner (15-9, 2.74 ERA) while the Mets counter with wunderkind Noah Syndergaard (14-9, 2.60 ERA). On paper, it looks like a possible mismatch in favor of San Francisco despite being on the road.
Bumgarner has 14 postseason games under his belt and his line is stunning – 7-3, 2.14 ERA in 88.1 innings with a 0.88 WHIP. Syndergaard is 2-1, 3.32 ERA, 1.21 WHIP in three appearances. The game is not played on paper and the big (6-foot-6, 240 pounds) right-hander has stepped up since becoming the de facto ace of the staff. In his final seven outings, he is 4-2/2.06/0.98 which is as good as it gets against Bumgarner.
Neither starter will factor in the decision because they will likely leave with the score tied. In a win or go home game, manager manager Bruce Bochy will ride Bumgarner as long as possible simply because he can, and unless the Mets can get his pitch count up by being patient at the plate he goes eight innings – minimum.
Syndergaard had a career high 183.2 innings this year and manager Terry Collins is not going to go deep with him for two reasons. He is looking to protect his pitcher in case the Mets go further into the playoffs, and he has a solid bullpen that can pick things up from the sixth inning on.
PREDICTION: The bullpen will decide this game and Mets’ closer Jeurys Familia will nail down the save in a one-run nail-biter.