Published Jun 8, 9:23pm ET by
Paul Lebowitz - Betting Preview Analyst and Sports Writer
Last updated Jun 8, 9:23pm ET
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Updated Jun 8, 9:23pm ET
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| New York Mets | -120 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | +109 |
The Cardinals visit the Mets coming off a 3-game sweep of the NL Central rival Reds and having won 4 straight. They are a surprise team in MLB this season and are contending for a playoff spot.
St. Louis sends righty Dustin May to the mound.
May is not spectacular, but he has generally kept the Cardinals in the games he's started. He has a 0.1 bWAR in 12 starts with a 4.59 ERA. His ERA blew up because of his first two starts of the season in which he allowed 13 earned runs in 7.1 innings. He's pitched reasonably effectively since then.
In 66.2 innings, he's allowed 67 hits and 34 earned runs, walking 19 and striking out 60.
Jordan Walker has heated up again after a brief slump. His average is back over .300. He has 16 homers and a .922 OPS. Ivan Herrera has a .780 OPS. Masyn Winn has gotten his batting average up to .236 after a terrible start. Nolan Gorman is batting .199.
Against Mets starter Freddy Peralta, Pedro Pages is 2 for 6 with 2 home runs. Winn in 3 for 17 with 3 singles. Walker is 2 for 9 with 2 singles. Gorman is 3 for 12 with a double. Alec Burleson is 4 for 21 with 2 doubles. Lars Nootbaar is 4 for 19 with 4 singles.
After struggling for two starts, Freddy Peralta got back on track in Seattle, holding the Mariners to 1 run in 6 hits in 6 innings, walking 2 and striking out 6.
Overall, he's got a 1.0 bWAR and a 3.63 ERA in 13 starts. In 72 innings, he's allowed 65 hits and 29 earned runs, walking 30 and striking out 74. He's allowed 9 homers. While his numbers are passable, he has not been the ace the Mets want or need. If they're getting back into contention, they need the Peralta from 2025 with the Brewers when he was 5th in the NL Cy Young Award voting.
At the plate, Carson Benge is coming of a 5 for 5 performance in San Diego with a triple and a home run. Juan Soto has an .894 OPS and 13 homers. A.J. Ewing is batting .259 with 7 stolen bases in 10 attempts. Marcus Semien has been hot. He's raised his average to .226 with 8 homers. Bo Bichette is also hitting well of late and his average is up to .234.
For the Mets against May, Soto is 2 for 11 with 2 doubles. Brett Baty is 2 for 5 with 2 singles. Eric Wagaman is 1 for 2 with a single. Semien is 0 for 3. Jared Young, who's been hitting well since taking over at 1st base, is 0 for 3 with 2 K's.
The Mets need to start winning series if they're going to make a playoff run. Their travels to the West Coast are over. That's a positive for the remainder of the season. However, they must have a vintage Peralta. Since he's singing for his free agent supper, it's important to him as an individual to pitch well.
May has kept the Cardinals competitive. They are limited offensively with only Walker providing consistent offense.
In the opener of their 3-game series, the Mets will pick up the win behind Peralta and break the Cardinals' 4-game winning streak.
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New York Mets -120
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