Giants vs. Mets 9/2: Rubber Match Sunday

Chris Stratton gets the daunting task of taking on Thor Noah Syndergaard on Sunday as the Giants try to walk away with a series win.

Stratton has faced the Mets exactly once in his career, on August 21st of this year in New York, where he allowed two earned runs 6.1 innings in the Giants 6-3 loss.

Syndergaard, on the other hand, has started against the Giants four times, losing the first two and winning the most recent two. Including the August 22nd game this year where he pitched six innings, struck out six and gave up two earned runs in a game the Mets won 5-3.

Syndergaard has a 2018 ERA of 3.51 and a 1.28 WHIP. However, over his last three starts, he has given up 10 earned runs, 22 hits and walked six. So he could be vulnerable. Or, this could be the bounce-back game he needed. The Giants are good at giving those out.

The Mets are 60-75 and sit in fourth place in the NL East. The Giants are 68-69 and sit in fourth place in the NL West. Neither will gain any ground with a win today, BUT if the Giants win, their record will be a very nice 69-69. So I think we all know what needs to happen.

Notes:

Today’s game will be MLB.com’s free game of the day, if you are out of network. Game time is 1:05 pm and you can tune in on NBC Sports Bay Area or listen on KNBR.

Here are your lineups: