8:05pm ET / 5:05pm PT
#955-956
New York Mets w/ DeGrom @ Chicago Cubs w/ Hamels
2** Play on: UNDER the TOTAL
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Next up, our Totals Train head out to the Windy City for Game Two of the Mets / Cubs series. And like our first play, it doesn’t get much better if you are looking for a potential Pitcher’s DUEL. The Cub’s current BEST pitcher against the ACE of the Mets. For the visitors, that means Jacob DeGrom will be taking the hill. He has the absolute BEST ERA for the season of any starting pitcher in Baseball. That would be a microscopic 1.71 in 26 starts covering 174 innings! And if you have been following the Mets, then you already now that they have been providing DeGrom with virtually NO offensive run support for the entire season. SinCe May, New York has averaged only 2.9 runs per game when DeGrom pitches. Its scary to think that Degrom can pitch better than he has all year, but its true. In his last four starts, his K/BB ratio has been 41-6… he allowed ZERO home runs in those four starts… and his ERA in those four starts is just 0.97! In the last three seasons, DeGrom has made there starts versus the Cubs, and his ERA in those there starts has been just 1.28. Meanwhile, the Cubs will be sending newly-acquired lefty Cole Hamels to the mound. he has been nothing short of BRILLIANT since joining his new team. Talk about Domination! Hamels has gone a perfect 4-0 in five starts with Chicago, with an ERA of only 0.79. Since coming back to the National League, he has allowed ZERO home runs in those five starts (covering 34 innings). Its been a while since he has faced the Mets, but we gotta like this: Hamels’ last five starts vs New York has resulted in a 1-4 O/U rerecord and an ERA of only 1.00. Sealing the deal for us is an UMPIRE that we can indeed get behind. The would be new guy RAMON DE JESUS. Yes, our sample size is pretty small for De Jesus compared to other MLB Umpires (only 55 career games). But in his first year as a full-time ‘Man in Blue’, we can’t ignore his year-to-date record of 3-8-2 O/U. Not to mention his PERFECT record of 0-5-1 O/U in the NATIONAL LEAGUE… with an average of only 6.5 combined runs per game…