Braves vs. Mets Game 1 prediction and odds for Monday, May 1 (Bullpen Game for New York)

This weekend was a washout on the East Coast, especially in New York. The Atlanta Braves and New York Mets were squaring off for one of the biggest series of the young season, but all we’ve seen in five innings. The Braves took a Game 1 win, 4-0 in that rain shortened affair on Friday, and now they’ll play two at Citi Field today after back-to-back rainouts. 

It’s been an agonizing wait to see Spencer Strider on the mound, but the moment has finally come as he’ll start game one for the 18-9 Braves against Denyi Reyes and the 15-12 Mets. Strider is 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in five starts and Reyes has yet to allow a run across five relief appearances. 

With their young superstar on the mound, the Braves are the road favorites in Game 1. Here are the odds for Atlanta and New York. 

Braves vs. Mets odds, run line and total

Braves vs. Mets prediction and pick

The Mets had hoped that Max Scherzer’s suspension would have been served by this point, but with back-to-back games postponed, he’s yet to reach the 10-game mark for his use of a sticky substance on the mound. That leaves New York to turn to Reyes because they’re very thin in the rotation. Reyes was sent down to Syracuse to stretch out from a reliever, but only got 1.1 innings of work in his first outing and then had to be recalled to start the first game of this doubleheader. 

That means Reyes likely won’t give any length for the Mets, so the bullpen will have to work their way to the end of this one. The Mets bullpen is 11th in ERA and 11th in WHIP. They have a pretty strong group, but they’ll want to save arms with another game on the docket today. The Braves might not need to touch their bullpen at all with Spencer Strider on the mound. 

Strider is finally starting to find the efficiency he needs to be a true ace, he went eight scoreless with 13 strikeouts last time out, the longest outing of his career. He’s a truly dominant guy on the mound and the Braves are a perfect 5-0 in his starts. 

I love the Braves with the great matchup on the mound, but there isn’t much value because of the price on them, so instead I’ll take the under because I do have faith in the Mets bullpen to survive without a true starter. They have an advantage with everyone fresh after two days off. 

Follow all Josh Yourish’s bets HERE

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change