On Monday, the New York Mets picked up a big win over the Houston Astros behind a vintage start from Max Scherzer. On Tuesday, they’ll look to get another strong start from a veteran pitcher when they send Justin Verlander (2-3, 4.40 ERA) to the mound for Game 2 of the series. The Astros will send Framber Valdez (6-5, 2.27 ERA) to the mound. First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. ET.
The Astros are -145 moneyline favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook, while the Mets are +125 underdogs. The total is set at 7.5.
Mets-Astros picks: Tuesday, June 20
Injury report
Mets
Day to day: C Francisco Alvarez (hit by pitch on hand)
Out: RP Edwin Uceta (recovery from left knee surgery), SP Elieser Hernandez (right shoulder strain), SP Jose Quintana (recovery from rib surgery), RP Sam Coonrod (right lat strain)
Astros
Out: SP Jose Urquidy (right shoulder inflammation), OF Michael Brantley (right shoulder surgery), DH Yordan Alvarez (oblique strain)
Starting pitchers
Justin Verlander vs. Framber Valdez
Verlander is back in Houston after an illustrious five-year tenure that saw him capture two Cy Young awards and two World Series titles. He’s had a bit of an up-and-down June, as he’s had two starts where he allowed one run in six innings, and one start where he allowed four runs in three runs against the Braves. He’s had a ton of success at Minute Maid Park with a career record of 29-12 and a 2.41 ERA.
Valdez enters tonight’s start in the midst of one of the best stretches in his career, as he has an ERA of 1.32 over his last five starts, which is the lowest ERA over a five-start span in his career.
Astros P Framber Valdez allowed just 1 ER over 7 IP tonight against the Nationals, lowering his ERA over his last 5 starts to 1.32.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 15, 2023
That’s the lowest ERA over a 5-start span for Valdez in his MLB career. pic.twitter.com/73lTsd5AWP
Valdez currently ranks in the 87th percentile in walk rate and the 89th percentile in curveball spin.
Over/Under pick
While these two teams cleared the over on Monday, a lot of the Mets’ damage was done after the game was already decided. With Valdez and Verlander on the mound, I’m banking on tonight’s game being a bit of a lower scoring affair.
Pick: Under 7.5
Moneyline pick
I like the Mets to pull off a bit of an upset. They’ve got momentum on their side from their win on Monday, and have one of the best pitchers in the history of Minute Maid Park on the mound. I like them to make it two in a row.
Pick: Mets