After dominating a pair of division rivals, the New York Mets look to maintain their winning ways with a visit to the Tampa Bay Rays in the final game of a weekend set. Even with a sweep of the Marlins to start their road trip, the Mets own the fewest road wins of any team in playoff contention.
ODDS ANALYSIS
The suddenly surging New York Mets climbed to the top of the NL East following consecutive three-game sweeps of Washington and Miami and they enter the weekend having won nine of 11 games behind a lineup bolstered at the trade deadline. The Mets outscored Miami 25-8 to open their Florida swing, collecting at least 12 hits in all three games and scored five or more runs in four straight, their longest such stretch of the season. A sweep of the hapless Marlins is nice, but it doesn’t change the fact that the Mets are still a disaster away from Citi Field. New York is just 20-32 on the road this season, in the red 9.9 units. Similar to the Mets, the Rays have found some offense, averaging 5.1 runs in a 10-game span that ended with a 6-5 loss in Chicago on Wednesday. That’s nearly two runs higher than what they had been averaging putting the over at 6-2-2 in that run.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Bartolo Colon (10-10, 4.72 ERA) evened his record with a win after holding the Marlins to a lone run in eight innings on Monday. He still owns a 5.53 ERA since May 18, but has delivered eight-inning, one-run starts twice in his last three outings. The third was a six-run clunker when he lasted 2.1 innings. The veteran righty has been inconsistent this season, especially lately, and eyes consecutive wins after getting his first since June 12.
Colon is 9-5 in 23 lifetime starts against the Rays, but hasn’t faced them since 2012.
Chris Archer (10-8, 2.54 ERA) notched his 15th quality start of the season Tuesday against the White Sox, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk en route to his first win since June 23. Archer fanned seven in the game raising his season total to 180, the second-most in the AL. Despite a sparkling 2.74 ERA, Archer is just 3-6 in 13 home starts.
He’ll face the Mets for the first time in his young career.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“We discussed that during the last homestand, that we need to be more aggressive. I think even before Steven Souza got hurt, he was a big part of that. He started swinging the bat early in counts and it’s kind of transitioned to a lot of the guys in the lineup. Not that it wasn’t working, but we weren’t getting the type of production that we’re capable of, maybe being a little less aggressive.” – Rays’ manager Kevin Cash on his team approach of swinging earlier in at-bats.
LIVE BETTING or SITUATIONAL BETTING
For months the Mets ranked among baseball’s worst offensive teams in nearly every major statistical category – runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging, you name it. Yet over the past two weeks, they’ve transformed into one of the best, moving ahead of the Nationals into first place in the NL East. The Mets continued their seemingly unstoppable ways, finishing off a sweep of the Marlins with an 8-6 win. The Mets offensive revival dates back to July 25 when they scored 15 runs on the day trade acquisitions Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson arrived. Since that night, the Mets averaged more than six runs per game, nearly doubling their 3.4 run average over their first 97 contests. Getting Yoenis Cespedes, who’s hitting .318 with five RBIs in his first five games with the team, helped strengthen the offense as well.
PROP TALK
Without a lot of fanfare surrounding him or the team, Rays third baseman Evan Longoria has quietly put together a solid campaign. Longo went 7 for 14 in the White Sox series helping the club produce 21 runs while taking two of three. He hit his 12th home run of the season in Wednesday’s game and extended his modest hitting streak to six games. He’s batting .279 for the year, which would be his best in three seasons. He’s also had success against Colon with four hits, including a pair of doubles, in 11 career at-bats with three walks and two RBIs. In 192 at-bats at the Trop this season, Longoria is hitting .302.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
The Mets new found offense will get a stiff test against the brilliant right arm of Chris Archer, who’s a legitimate ace and has the potential to win a Cy Young down the line. The Rays will likely have an easier time producing against Bartolo Colon, who’s been wildly inconsistent this season. Juan Uribe, Kelly Johnson and Yoenis Cespedes are decent players, but they are not the guys you build an offense around. The Mets will stumble back to their inefficient ways with Archer’s help.
Tampa Bay 4, New York 2
The MLB lines for this contest will first be released by BookMaker Sportsbook. Gamble on the game between every half inning with BookMaker’s live betting feature. Along with an adjusted in-game moneyline, you can wager on what will happen in the next at-bat or how many runs will be scored in the next inning. Live betting is the most exciting way to play!
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here so start betting with BookMaker today! The ballgame pitting the New York Mets versus the Tampa Bay Rays will commence Sunday, August 9, 2015, at 1:10 p.m. ET at Tropicana Field.
