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• New York Mets vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
• Tuesday, August 15 at 7PM ET
• Citi Field in Queens, New York
We don’t have to tell you that the 2023 season has been a bit of a disappointment for the New York Mets. This team entered this year with huge expectations, but they’re currently more than 10 games under .500. No one expected this to be the case for the NL East side. If the squad from Flushing wants to turn things around, then there’s no question they need to go on a run. With that said, the Mets are favored to take down the Pirates on a Tuesday night and they can’t let this game slip away.
The Pirates have been just as bad as the Mets this year, with the NL Central side not expected to make any kind of a late push to try and grab an NL Wild Card spot. As bad as New York has been, fans are still clinging to some hope that they’ll somehow find a way to sneak into the playoffs. In order for that to happen, then the Mets must wake up and post strong performances against teams with bad records.
| Mets vs. Pirates odds |  |  |  |  |
| Mets to win | -115 | -115 | -115 | -115 |
| Pirates to win | +125 | +125 | +125 | +125 |
| Over to hit | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
| Under to hit | -110 | -110 | -110 | -110 |
That’s exactly the case this week with Pittsburgh in town. This series will take place at Citi Field, which should make life easier for the club. It’s not going to be easy for the Mets to dominate Pittsburgh, as they’ve got some young pieces that fans are excited about. However, there are no excuses to be made for the Mets. They have to pick their game up, especially with their payroll being the way that it is.
According to the best-rated sportsbooks, which includes the reliable Bovada review, the Mets, the home team, hold -115 MLB betting odds to come away with a victory. The Pirates are the underdogs for this one, holding +125 odds. From our chair, there’s no reason that the Mets shouldn’t be able to not only win this contest, but also do so in style. We’re going with New York as our pick to grab a victory.
Series win snaps 📸 pic.twitter.com/XBRmyCBRNn
— New York Mets (@Mets) August 10, 2023
The over should hit between the Mets and Pirates
Leading up to this one, we think the over should hit between the Mets and Pirates on Tuesday night at Citi Field. While we don’t know who will be getting the start for the Pirates, NY is expected to give left-handed hurler David Peterson the ball to start the evening. Peterson has great potential when he’s on top of his game, but it has been a rough season for him thus far in 2023 and fans are growing impatient.
Peterson is 3-7, with a 5.61 ERA. This is not what people were hoping to see out of him at all throughout the spring and summer. There’s time for Peterson to turn his year around and improve, but he has been far from impressive. Fans have been calling for him to be removed from the rotation. If he doesn’t get things going during the second half of the campaign, then we could see him playing for a different team in 2024.
Reminder: Pete Alonso has the most Home Runs since Pete Alonso's rookie season pic.twitter.com/ikP8TBnslv
— Mets'd Up Podcast (@MetsdUp) August 11, 2023
We should find out soon who the Pirates will start, but he’s going to have his hands full trying to contain the Mets lineup. The lineup is highlighted by Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor. While it has been a bit of a down summer for these sluggers, they’re also a threat to hit a homer whenever they’re at the dish. Lindor has tremendous power and the fans at Citi Field would love to see him go yard against the Pirates.
Per the oddsmakers, the over/under has been set at seven runs for the Tuesday showdown. Once Pittsburgh announces its starter, people will be a bit more calm with what they decide to do, but again, we don’t think it’ll matter. It wouldn’t be a stunner if the Mets and Pirates reach 10 runs for this one. The stands at Citi Field will be rockin’ as well. With all of that said, we’re going with the over.
New York is on the outside looking in for the postseason
At this point in the campaign, New York is on the outside looking in for the postseason and they’re going to need a miracle to somehow sneak in. There’s no chance the Mets will be able to win the NL East, as the Atlanta Braves are a lock to get that job done. Matter of fact, the Braves hold the top World Series betting odds and a lot of experts and analysts think they’ll be the ones to win the Fall Classic. People all over Queens would hate to see that, as the Mets-Braves rivalry knows no limits.
With that said, New York could save some face if they’re able to get into the playoffs. They hold +1000 odds to make that happen, which tells you that they don’t have a great chance to pull things off. You never know how the end of the campaign might go for them. New York must wake up ASAP, though, and put themselves in a position to prove their haters wrong.
