Glavine Approaching 300
After failing to get win No. 294 in his last start, Tom Glavine’s next step towards 300 wins comes against a team he has handled well recently.
Glavine will take the mound for the New York Mets (13-8) when they meet the Washington Nationals for the middle game of a three-game set on Saturday night.
Oddsmakers have made New York -220 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for todays game, the over/under has been set at 9ev total runs (Matchup). Our public betting information shows that 80% of bets for this game have been placed on New York -220 (View MLB Bet Percentages).
Glavine (3-1, 3.07 ERA) has the second-most wins among active pitchers, trailing only former Atlanta Braves teammate Greg Maddux (334), now with San Diego.
Glavine is 5-3 with a 2.61 ERA over the last two seasons against Washington, and the left-hander hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in any of those starts.
He’s on a similar run this season, having allowed no more than three earned runs in any of five starts. In his last outing, Glavine left with a 6-3 lead, but Atlanta hit three-run home runs in the seventh and eighth innings of a 9-6 win.
"I don’t know if the sting you feel is shock or disappointment over not winning the game," Glavine said. "I think anytime you have a game like that, it hurts."
The Mets have gone 2-2 since then, winning consecutive games against Colorado before dropping back-to-back games, including a 4-3 defeat in the series opener on Friday. New York stranded nine runners, wasting a 3-for-4 night at plate by Moises Alou, who leads the majors with a .397 batting average.
"We’ve got to do a better job of taking care of our business," Mets manager Willie Randolph told the team’s official Web site.
In the win, the Nationals (8-15) also ended their season-long scoring drought in the first inning. After singles by Ronnie Belliard and Dmitri Young, Austin Kearns hit a three-run homer. The Nationals had set a new NL record by opening the season with 22 games without a run in the opening frame.
"A lot of the guys, they were jumping in the dugout and screaming about it. Finally! Scoring in the first inning,” Nationals rookie manager Manny Acta said. "To me, it doesn’t matter where you score, as long as in the ninth, you have more runs than the opposition."
Young is batting .381 (8-for-21) in his career against Glavine, and third baseman Ryan Zimmerman is 5-for-13 with three doubles against him.
Washington’s Jerome Williams (0-4, 7.77) is still seeking his first win. Williams allowed 10 runs – nine earned – in six innings in the Nationals’ 12-6 loss to Florida on Sunday in his last start. He is 0-1 with a 6.48 ERA in two career starts against the Mets, but he has not faced them since 2004.
The win was just the Nationals’ second in 15 games over the Mets at RFK Stadium. Washington hasn’t won consecutive home games over New York since April 29-30, 2005 – its first season after relocating from Montreal.
by: Michael Cash – thespread.com – Email Us
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