Thursday, March 9, 2017

First Data Field

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Probable Pitchers: Anibal Sanchez vs. Jacob deGrom

The Detroit Tigers visit First Data Field on Thursday, March 9, 2017 to play the New York Mets in a Spring Training matchup. The probable starters are Anibal Sanchez for the Tigers and Jacob deGrom for the Mets. The opening line for this matchup has Detroit at +110 and New York at -130. The Tigers had a 80-73-8 over/under record and a 86-75-0 run line mark last season, meaning they covered 53% of the time. The Mets were 76-86-0 against the run line and had a 74-85-3 over/under record. They covered the spread 47% of the time.

The Tigers are coming off a 86-75 record in 2016, including 41-40 on the road. Starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez had a 7-13 record with an earned run average of 5.87 and a WHIP of 1.46. He had 135 strikeouts over his 153.1 innings pitched and he gave up 171 hits last season. He allowed 10 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 5.06. The bullpen last year had an earned run average of 4.22 and they gave up 503 base hits on the year. Teams hit .256 against the bullpen while being struck out 446 times and walking 181 times last season. As a team, Detroit allowed 8.93 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.76 batters per nine innings. They were 20th in the league in team earned run average at 4.24. The Tigers pitchers collectively gave up 1,417 base hits and 672 earned runs. They allowed 182 home runs last season and they allowed 1.1 homers per nine innings as a staff. Detroit as a pitching staff walked 462 batters and struck out 1,232. They walked 2.9 men per 9 innings while striking out 7.8 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.32 and their FIP as a unit was 4.16.

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As a team Detroit batted .267, good for 3rd in the league while putting together a .260 average away from home. The Tigers held a .438 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .331 which was good for 5th in baseball. They ranked 3rd in baseball with 9.17 hits per game. Miguel Cabrera is coming off a 2016 season in which he hit .316 with an on-base percentage of .393. He had 188 hits last season along with 92 runs scored and 108 runs batted in. He struck out 116 times and walked 75 times. Ian Kinsler hit .288 last year and he had an on-base percentage of .348. He totaled 178 hits while scoring 117 runs and he drove in 83. He walked 45 times and struck out on 115 occasions. The Tigers had 1,476 hits, including 252 doubles and 211 home runs. They stole 58 bases and were thrown out stealing 29 times. Detroit walked 493 times last season and they struck out 1,303 times as a unit. They left 1,105 men on base and had a team OPS of .769. They scored 4.66 runs per contest and scored a total of 750 runs last year.

New York had a 44-37 home record and a 87-75 overall mark in 2016. With an earned run average of 3.04, Jacob deGrom had a 7-8 record and a 1.20 WHIP last season. He had 143 strikeouts over the 148 innings he pitched during which he gave up 142 hits. He allowed 8.6 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 3.32. Last season the bullpen had an earned run average of 3.53 and they gave up 472 base hits on the year. Teams hit .234 against the Mets bullpen while being struck out 569 times and walking 189 times last season. As a team, New York allowed 8.7 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.68 batters per nine innings. They were 3rd in the league in team earned run average at 3.58. The Mets pitchers as a team surrendered 1,398 base knocks and 575 earned runs last season. They gave up 152 home runs last year and they gave up 0.9 home runs per nine innings as a staff. New York as a staff walked 439 hitters and struck out 1,396. They gave up a walk 2.7 times per 9 innings while they struck out 8.7 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.27 while their FIP as a staff was 3.57.

As a team, they batted .246, good for 25th in the league while putting together a .239 average at home. The Mets held a .417 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .316 which was good for 24th in baseball. They ranked 26th in baseball with 8.28 hits per contest. Yoenis Cespedes comes into this matchup after batting .280 with an OBP of .354. He had 134 hits last year along with 72 runs scored and 86 RBI. He struck out 108 times and walked on 51 occasions. Asdrubal Cabrera hit .280 in 2016 and he had an OBP of .336. He collected 146 hits while scoring 65 runs and driving in 62. He earned a walk 38 times and punched out 103 times. The Mets as a unit had 1,342 base hits, including 240 doubles and 218 homers. They had 42 stolen bases and were thrown out 18 times. New York as a team walked 517 times last year and they struck out 1,302 times. They had 1,120 men left on base and had an OPS of .733. They scored 4.14 runs per game and totaled 671 runs last season.

Detroit Tigers Betting Trends

The Detroit Tigers were 80-73-8 against the over/under last season

The Detroit Tigers were 86-75-0 against the run line last season

New York Mets Betting Trends

The New York Mets were 74-85-3 against the over/under last season

The New York Mets were 76-86-0 against the run line last season

Injuries to Watch

Detroit Tigers

No key injuries to report

New York Mets

No key injuries to report

Tony's Pick: Take the Tigers +110

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