This Saturday, the (55-34) New York Mets and the (34-54) Chicago Cubs will play game two of this four-game series. The first pitch will be thrown out at 2:20 PM EST inside Wrigley Field. This is also the first time that these two teams have matched up this regular season.
The New York Mets are coming into this one after winning their previous series against the Atlanta Braves. The Mets looked great on the mound as they held the Braves to four combined runs in their two wins. They will need their pitching to stay hot if they want to take care of business against the Cubs in this one.
The Chicago Cubs are entering this one after being swept by the Baltimore Orioles in their short two-game series. The Cubs struggled at the plate, as they only scored three runs in this series. They will need their bats to heat up if they want to challenge the Mets.
This article was written/published before last night's results.
The New York Mets looked great in their last series against the Braves, as their starting pitching rotation is still one of the strongest in the MLB. They are now getting healthy and they are very tough to score against. The Mets are also (6-4) in their last 10 games. At the plate, they are currently scoring 4.79 runs per game and they are hitting .254. This is the fourth most runs scored per game and the fifth highest overall team batting average. They have shown that they can consistently reach base and drive in men when they are in scoring position. The Mets have also shown that they have a little bit of home run power littered throughout their lineup. They are averaging 1.01 home runs per game, which is the 18th highest avenge in the league. They aren't one-dimensional at the plate and they can score multiple different ways. I also expect New York to stay fairly conservative once they have reached base safely, as they have only stol en 30 bases this season, which is the 26th least in the league. They allow their bats to move their base runners into scoring position, as they don't want to risk losing any possible runs.
Considering all the injuries on the pitcher staff, the Mets are currently allowing 3.94 runs per game, which is the sixth least in the MLB. They don't make many mistakes in the field and they allow their pitching to keep their opponents off the base paths. The Mets also have a .988 fielding percentage, which is the seventh best in the league. New York has only committed 39 fielding errors, which is the fifth least in the league. They will stay clean in the field and allow their pitching to do the majority of the work.
According to MLB.com, the Mets will be starting Taijuan Walker. He has been solid this season, as well. He is currently (7-2) with a 2.63 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. He has also been even better on the road this season. He is (5-2) with a 2.63 ERA, as he is shutting opposing offenses down when they are at the plate. He looked great in his last start against the Marlins too. He pitched for 7.0 innings and didn't allow an earned run.