San Francisco at NY Mets NL Wildcard Betting Pick

The San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets are set to clash this Wednesday in a gigantic winner-takes- all NL wild-card game featuring some of the best ball-hurlers and ball-hitters in the game squaring. Starting on the mound for the Mets will be RHP Noah Syndergaard (14-9, 2.60 ERA, 218 K) in a highly-anticipated showdown against San Francisco’s LHP Madison Bumgarner (15-9, 2.74 ERA, 251 K). Join us as we preview this encounter and don’t forget to check our expert MLB betting predictions and picks at the end of the article.

San Francisco at NY Mets NL Wildcard Betting Pick & TV Info

It’s on…#BeliEVEN #OrangeOctober pic.twitter.com/xfJEzm47RE

— SFGiants (@SFGiants) October 3, 2016

Where: Citi Field, Flushing New York When: Wednesday, October 5, 8.09 PM ET TV: ESPN Radio: San Francisco / New York Stream: MLB.tv MLB Lines: Giants (-103), Mets (-107), OVER/UNDER 6.

Why Bet on the Giants?

After a bright start to the season as one of the best teams in the nation, the Giants had an unexpected collapse in the second half of the season, compiling a disappointing 30-42 record since the All-Star break to finish the regular season as a wild card team. All that doesn’t matter much, though, as they now have a chance to write their wrongs with a win over the Mets this Wednesday. And to their advantage, they have one of the best pitchers in the game in Bumgarner to lead their charge. Besides coming off a strong season that saw him set a single-season franchise record for strikeouts by a leftie, Bumgarner is a well-known big-game pitcher, a fact that is affirmed by the incredible 1.03 ERA he posted in seven postseason games during the 2014 season. The leftie also met Syndergaard on May 1st and outdueled the Mets ace, pitching six scoreless innings and striking out seven to help the Giants to a 6-1 win over NY. As long as San Francisco does its job in the offense, it should be all good for the Giants this Wednesday, as Bumgarner is a sure bet as any to bring his A-game for this match.

Why Bet on the Mets?

Despite getting outpitched by Bumgarner in their May meeting, Syndergaard (who allowed four runs in 5 2/3 innings in that game) has all the tools needed to come out on top this Wednesday. For one, star slugger Yoenis Cespedes and his offensive compatriots are dialed in, meaning good run support should be likely for Syndergaard and his relievers. In addition, Syndergaard– he who led Mets in ERA and strikeouts this season– proved to be a solid player in last year’s MLB playoffs, helping the Mets to win the NL Championship and being the only Mets pitcher to win a game in the 2015 World Series. And above everything, the Mets– unlike the Giants who had a poor second half of the season– have been quite consistent this year, bringing with them solid momentum into this game. Add that to the value that comes with playing this do-or- die game at home where they took two of three vs. the Giants in the regular season; the defending NL Champs should confidently fancy their winning chances this Wednesday.

My Wild Card Prediction and Pick

In such one-game scenarios, statistics like regular-season splits and late-season form rarely matter, so the fact that the Mets beat the Giants in their season series 4-3 and went 2-1 at Citi Field should not be taken too seriously. Even so, the Mets have played well at home all season, so it’s hard to imagine that they’ll be playing any differently here. Bumgarner is an ace by all accounts and his ability to go deep in games will trouble the Mets, but with Syndergaard channeling strength from his extra rest and NY's Cespedes-led offense predictably playing better than San Francisco’s iffy offense, we are inclined to side with the hosts for the victory. Predicted Score: Mets 4, Giants 3 MLB Pick: Mets