New York Mets Vs. Washington Nationals (4/7/22) Starting Lineup, Betting Odds, Prediction
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Last season the New York Mets finished a disappointing third in the National League East with a 77-85 record. The poor finish to the 2021 campaign caused New York to fire manager Luis Rojas and hire Buck Showalter, who has a career managerial record of 1551-1517-1. The Washington Nationals were 65-97 in 2021, fifth place in the National League East. Entering his fifth season as Washington’s manager Dave Martinez has a career managerial record of 266-280.
New York Mets Vs. Washington Nationals Betting Odds
The Mets are 4-1 in their last five games as a favorite. New York is 16-41 in their last 57 road games vs. a left-handed starter. Dating back to last season the Mets are 5-13 in their last 18 games on grass. New York is 7-20 in their last 27 road games dating back to 2021. The Mets are +1200 to win their first World Series title since 1986. Washington is 18-41 in their last 59 games as a home underdog. The Nationals are 9-28 in their last 37 games vs. National League East foes. Dating back to 2021, Washington is 6-20 in their last 26 home games. The Nationals are +15000 to win their second World Series in the last four seasons.
New York Mets Starting Lineup
1. Brandon Nimmo, CF
2. Starling Marte, RF
3. Francisco Lindor, SS
4. Pete Alonso, 1B
5. J.D. Davis, DH
6. Eduardo Escobar, 3B
7. Mark Canha, LF
8. Jeff McNeil, 2B
9. James McCann, C
New York Mets Vs. Patrick Corbin (L)
Last season, his third year in the big leagues, Pete Alonso smashed 37 home runs, drove in 97 runs, hit a career high .262 with an OPS of .863. The Mets first baseman is averaging 46 home runs and 109 RBI with a .542 slugging percentage in a full 162 game schedule. Against the Nationals last season, Alonso hit five home runs, drove in 12 runs, hit .403 with an awesome OPS of 1.227 in 67 at-bats. Francisco Lindor struggled in his first season as Met but did start to play well after the All-Star break. In 2021, the shortstop hit .230 with 20 home runs, 63 runs batted in, 73 runs scored and an OPS of .734. The second year, Met enters the 2022 season with 1,000 career hits and a .278 lifetime batting average. Against left handers in 2021, Lindor hit .240 with five home runs and had a .311 on base percentage in 164 plate appearances. Jeff McNeil a lifetime .299 career hitter, hit .251 in 2021. He hit seven home runs, knocked in 51 runs with an on base percentage .319 in 386 at-bats. In 19 at-bats against Patrick Corbin last season, McNeil had four hits (one double) with an on-base percentage of .250.
Starling Marte entering his first season as New York Met, hit .310 with 12 home runs and 55 runs batted in playing for the Marlins and Athletics last season. Overall Marte had 42 extra base hits and an OPS of .841. He had 26 at-bats against the Nationals Corbin last season; seven hits, three runs batted in with a .321 on-base percentage. Brandon Nimmo battled injuries last season, playing in 92 games for New York. In 325 at-bats, Nimmo hit .292 with eight home runs and 28 runs batted in. Additionally, he had an on-base percentage of .401 with 142 total bases. Last season in 21 at-bats against Patrick Corbin, Nimmo had four hits (all singles). Ironically, he’s battling a neck injury as we head into the new season.
Left-hander Patrick Corbin will be on the hill for the Nationals in the season opener. The nine-year veteran won nine games with an ERA of 5.82 in 171.2 innings in 2021. Additionally, last season Corbin led the league in losses (16), earned runs (111) and home runs allowed (37).
Washington Nationals Starting Lineup
1. César Hernández, 2B
2. Juan Soto, RF
3. Nelson Cruz, DH
4. Josh Bell, 1B
5. Keibert Ruiz, C
6. Lane Thomas, LF
7. Alcides Escobar, SS
8. Maikel Franco, 3B
9. Victor Robles, CF
Washington Nationals Vs. Tylor Megill (R)
23-year-old, Juan Soto is the centerpiece of the Washington Nationals offense. In 2021, he hit .313 with 29 home runs, 51 extra base hits, 95 runs batted in, .999 OPS, and a .534 slugging percentage. Entering his fourth season, Soto has a lifetime batting average of .301 with 98 home runs, 312 runs batted in and an OPS of .981. Against right-handed pitching last season, he hit .333 with 19 homers, 60 runs knocked in and an incredible OPS of 1.073 in 416 plate appearances.
Josh Bell, who was acquired by the Nationals prior to the 2021 season, hit .261 with 27 home runs, 52 extra base hits, 88 runs batted in, and 75 runs scored in 144 games. Bell had a .476 slugging percentage and an OPS of .823 in his first season in Washington. The first baseman hit .268 against right-handed pitching in 2021, slamming 18 home runs and driving in 62 runs. Additionally, he had an OPS of .815 with a .478 slugging percentage vs. righties. Bell had five at-bats against the Mets, Tylor Megill last season, hitting a home run and driving in two runs.
The ageless Nelson Cruz signed with the Nationals in the off-season to be the club’s designated hitter. In 2021, Cruz hit 32 home runs, drove in 86 runs, and hit .265 in 140 games playing for the Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays. The 41-year-old belted 22 homers and had a slugging percentage of .477 in 388 plate appearances against righties last year.
Due to injuries to superstar pitchers, Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer (who will start New York’s second game of the season), new Mets manager, Buck Showalter has elected to give the ball to Tylor Megill on opening day. Last year, Megill in his first season in the big leagues started 18 games going 4-6 with an ERA of 4.52. He had one complete game and struck out 99 hitters in 89.2 innings.
New York Mets Vs. Washington Nationals Picks & Prediction
