Braves vs Mets | Jacob deGrom favorite NL Cy Young

Mets ace Jacob deGrom has been so dominant this season – even as a hitter on the days he pitches! – that he’s not only the NL Cy Young favorite but also the MVP favorite. DeGrom is scheduled to pitch in Monday’s Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves with New York set to be a solid favorite on the MLB odds. Because it’s part of a doubleheader, it’s only scheduled for seven innings.

How to Bet Braves at Mets MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Monday, 5:10 PM ET
Where: Citi Field
Probable pitchers (away/home): Ian Anderson or Kyle Muller/Jacob deGrom
TV: MLB Network; MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
Opening MLB Lines: TBA (waiting on official pitcher announcements; Mets will be favored)

Why Bet on Braves?

Atlanta is at a bit of a disadvantage here in that it had to play a doubleheader on Sunday (vs. St. Louis) with the second game Sunday night and then fly late to New York. And now the Braves have to play two more games on Monday – that’s taxing on a bullpen.

The Braves remain without starting catcher Travis D’Arnaud, the former Met, and two starting pitchers due to injury. D’Arnaud is currently on the injured list after breaking his thumb while Mike Soroka is out following Achilles’ surgery and Huascar Ynoa is out with a broken hand suffered while punching a bench in Milwaukee. All three could be back in August.

Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies is the only player in baseball with at least 20 doubles, 10 homers and five triples this season. Albies is looking for his third season of at least 40 doubles, 20 home runs and five triples, and would become just the 10th player in history with three such seasons. Albies would join Stan Musial (6), Lou Gehrig (6), Rogers Hornsby (6), Hank Greenberg (5), Chuck Klein (4), Mookie Betts (3), Joe Medwick (3), Ted Williams (3) and Al Simmons (3) as players with three such seasons.

It’s expected to be excellent right-hander Ian Anderson (4-3, 3.58) on the mound here. Anderson lasted four innings and gave up four runs last Wednesday against the Red Sox. Anderson struck out five and walked just one, but the Red Sox racked up seven hits and made him throw 87 pitches in four innings, making it an easy call to remove him for a pinch-hitter. It’s the third time in four starts that he’s given up four runs in right around four innings. Anderson’s recent rough stretch has pushed his season ERA to 3.58 — it sat at 2.82 through his first nine starts.

It’s possible that lefty Kyle Muller makes his first big-league start in this one and Anderson starts Game 2. Drafted with the 44th pick back in 2016, Muller has seen his fastball become a plus-plus pitch that has touched 100 mph, and he complements that heater with an above-average slider and useable curve as well. Muller has pitched in one MLB game, allowing two runs and four hits over one inning of relief last Wednesday vs. Boston.

Why Bet on Mets?

The Mets are in a bit of a funk, losing two straight and four of five but still have a nice lead atop the NL East. The team will get a big boost Monday, though, with Manager Luis Rojas confirming after Sunday’s game that second baseman Jeff McNeil will be activated from the injured list. What Rojas would not say, is whether or not that activation will come before the first game of their doubleheader or the second. He has been sidelined since mid-May due to a hamstring strain. McNeil was hitting .242/.336/.374 with three homers, eight RBI and one stolen base through 31 games.

Outfielder Brandon Nimmo (finger) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday. Nimmo should need about a week in Triple-A before he’s ready to return. He has been out since May 13. Along with Nimmo, Michael Conforto (hamstring) is in the midst of a rehab assignment at Syracuse, so the Mets should soon be back to full strength in the outfield.

Mets ace Jacob deGrom (shoulder) played catch before Sunday’s game against the Nationals. DeGrom told reporters that he felt good after playing catch, and when asked if he was still on track to start against the Braves on Monday, he responded: “That’s the plan.”

DeGrom left his start last Wednesday vs. the Cubs with shoulder soreness but an MRI came up clean. DeGrom actually believes he hurt himself the previous inning, when he swung and missed at a Robert Stock fastball. When deGrom returned to the mound for the third, his shoulder did not feel right.

In his start before that, deGrom left against the Padres after six innings with flexor tendinitis in his right arm. He was also pulled on May 9 against the Arizona Diamondbacks after five innings with right side tightness, later missing two starts. On May 4, he was scratched from a start because of the same issue.

This season, deGrom is 6-2 with a record-setting 0.54 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 111 strikeouts against eight walks in 67 innings. The Mets have won deGrom’s last six starts, which is the third-longest such streak since his debut in 2014. He has a scoreless innings streak of 25.0.

One subplot for this start is whether the Mets allow him to swing the bat. Rojas said that the coaching staff could instruct him not to swing but deGrom is one of the best-hitting pitchers in the majors with a .423 average (best among all pitchers) and more RBIs (six) than earned runs allowed (four).