Pete Alonso and the Baltimore Orioles are back in Queens on Tuesday night to take on the Mets at Citi Field, in a matchup between two teams that have both fallen toward the bottom of their divisions late in the season.
Neither starting pitcher is coming in with much momentum. Baltimore is sending Shane Baz to the mound, who has struggled away from home this year, going 2-8 with a 4.18 ERA in 10 road starts. The Mets counter with Sean Manaea, who has had a difficult September, allowing 16 hits and nine earned runs across 10 ⅔ innings.
Sportsbooks have installed the Mets as -130 favorites at home, with the Over/Under set at 8.5 total runs.
Alonso’s move to Baltimore in free agency drew plenty of attention, but both clubs enter this game well off the pace in their respective standings as the season winds down.
Despite the Mets’ inconsistent stretch, Juan Soto remains one of the more dangerous hitters in the lineup. The five-time All-Star is 3-for-5 with a home run and an RBI in eight career plate appearances against Baz. Soto has also hit .294 against fastballs this season, with 53 hits and 17 home runs — notable given that Baz’s four-seam fastball accounts for 34.4 percent of his pitch mix, according to StatCast data.
First pitch is set for Tuesday night at Citi Field in Flushing.
