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(MLB) Philadelphia vs. NY Mets,
Total: 8.00 | -130.00 Over
Result: Win
The set-up: I guess one could call the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies NL East rivals, as the two teams get set to square off in the opener of a three-game series at Citi Field Friday night. However, the Mets are going nowhere at 36-42 (10 1/2 games back of the first-place Nats) and the Phillies check in with MLB's worst record, at 26-51. The Mets are back home after a 10-game road trip. New York appeared headed for disaster when the Mets opened the trip by getting outscored 36-11 in a four-game sweep at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers but they won five of the last six games, sweeping the San Francisco Giants and taking two of three in Miami from the Marlins.The Phillies were off Thursday, a day after they completed a two-game sweep of the Mariners in Seattle with a come-from-behind 5-4 victory. Even with those back-to-back wins, the Phillies still own MLB's worst road record at 12-31. A win Friday would give the Phillies only their third winning streak of longer than two games this season.

The pitching matchup: It's a battle of right-handers, Philadelphia rookie Ben Lively (1-2 & 3.90 ERA) up against New York ace Jacob deGrom (7-3 & 3.71 ERA). Lively won his major league debut 5-3 against the Giants on June 3 (7 IP / 4 hits / 1 ER) but will be looking to snap a four-start win-less streak in this one. He's 0-2 and the team 0-4 in a stretch in which he's posted a 4.62 ERA. This marks his first appearance against the Mets. DeGrom is showing some "All Star form" in winning his last three starts, a stretch in which he has pitched at least eight innings each time and allowed just two ERs over 25 innings (0.72 ERA), which has lowered his seasonal ERA from 4.75 to 3.71.

The pick: "We're hoping our pitching is starting to fall in place right now," Collins said after Seth Lugo allowed two runs (one earned) over six innings to cap a six-game stretch in which Mets starters posted a 2.55 ERA. "And if it does, we've got an exciting second half ahead of us." DeGrom is only the second pitcher in 2017 to throw at least eight innings in three straight starts, joining Boston's Chris Sale. What's more, he's 4-0 with a 2.49 ERA in eight career starts against the Phillies, with the Mets winning all eight games. Lively's not in deGrom's class but when he gave up five runs (four earned) over 5 1/3 innings as the Phillies fell to the Diamondbacks 9-2 last Saturday, it marked the first time he had lasted fewer than six innings as a big-leaguer. Make the Under a 10* play.