The New York Mets (2-4) will turn to Noah Syndergaard (1-0, 0.00 ERA) in an effort to get back on track Tuesday when they take on the Miami Marlins (2-3) in the second of a three-game series.
The Mets are consensus -135 home betting favorites (bet $135 to win $100) against the Marlins, who will counter with ace Jose Fernandez (0-1, 7.94 ERA) looking to rebound from a rough outing in his 2016 debut.
New York has lost three in a row following a 10-3 shellacking at the hands and bats of Miami on Monday, with pitcher Steven Matz surrendering seven runs and six hits in only 1.2 innings while walking two and striking out one.
The Mets called up Matz at the end of last season, and he helped the team in the playoffs but remains eligible for National League Rookie of the Year because he made just six regular-season starts. He looked like an inexperienced player versus the Marlins, who got a home run from Giancarlo Stanton among 15 hits overall.
Syndergaard hopes to end the slide for the Mets after they lost all three games to NL East opponents at home. He was outstanding in his first start on the road against the defending World Series champion Kansas City Royals a week ago, allowing three hits in six scoreless innings of a 2-0 victory with one walk and nine strikeouts.
Syndergaard was even better at home last season, going 7-2 with a 2.46 ERA in 12 starts. Opposing batters hit .196 against him at Citi Field.
Meanwhile, Fernandez struck out 13 in his first start at home versus the Detroit Tigers last Wednesday but gave up five runs and five hits in 5.2 innings of a 7-3 loss for Miami. Former Marlin Jarrod Saltalamacchia did most of the damage with a home run and four RBI, and Victor Martinez added a two-run shot.
Fernandez suffered his first loss in 27 home starts, and he made just five road starts last season, going 1-1 with a 3.34 ERA.
Miami has won three straight meetings with New York—all as a road underdog—along with five of the last seven dating back to last year, according to the Odds Shark MLB Database.
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