Mets vs. Rays: 3 predictions for a series against MLB's best team

The New York Mets begin a series against the best team in MLB, the Tampa Bay Rays, at the team's worst moment. The Mets have had a terrible performance this past few weeks, falling to fourth place in the NL East standings.

The Tampa Bay Rays, for their part, have been showing enormous collective power, something that had not been evident in this team in 2021. The Mets, on the other hand, represent one of the worst offenses in the league, which looks like a series dominated by the Rays but not everything is like that.

1) Mets ace, Justin Verlander, is going to silence the best offense in MLB

Justin Verlander will have his most important start after missing nearly a month and fear due to injury. To date, Verlander has an ERA of 2.25, with an excellent WHIP of 0.83 and 12 strikeouts in 12 innings pitched.

The Tamba Bay Rays are the strongest opponent for a pitcher this season. The team is number one in barrel% and ranks top 5 in hard-hit contact and exit velocity. This has made Tampa the team with the most home runs and RBIs this year.

Verlander has been an experienced pitcher against teams with great offensive capabilities. Against the Rays, he has faced different team hitters in the past to who he has limited power contact, generating a sub-.330 xSLG.

One positive aspect for Verlander is that the Rays haven't been very effective this year against breaking pitches like the Curveballs. Players like Randy Arozarena, Wander Franco, and Taylor Walls, find themselves with negative results regarding the curves, according to Fangraphs statistics.

Likewise, while the team collectively has been hitting well against the slider, the most important players within the Rays' lineup are also generating negative results. This is relevant since the slider, which Verlander uses 35%, the opposition hits just .077.

Verlander has the biggest test for the first time in a Mets uniform. A quality outing against the Tampa Bay Rays could be a big statement for Verlander and the Mets team at a time of need for positive results and optimism.

2) Starling Marte will be the best hitter for the Mets vs. the pitching of the Rays

Starling Marte has been one of the biggest disappointments in the Mets' lineup this season. After posting a .292 batting average with a .468 SLG in 2022, his batting average has dropped nearly 50 points this season.

However, in recent games, there has been an improvement in Marte's batting. This improvement is evidenced in better results against fastballs, which he is hitting an average of .357 in May against .222 in the previous month.

These better results are due to a change in the approach at the plate. Starling Marte has been swinging more in recent weeks, which is leading to an increase in his contact%. Likewise, he is having a better recognition of the pitches it is receiving.

Another relevant aspect to expect a good result from Starling Marte against the Rays, is his hitting against lefties. The Rays start the series with lefty Jalen Beeks on the mound, which would result in something positive for the Mets outfielder.

Marte is hitting .271 against left-handed pitching, for whom he has produced two extra-base hits and four RBIs. Likewise, he has had good results against Rays bullpen pitchers such as Peter Fairbanks, whom he hits over .300 for life.

Starling Marte has had a better profile at the plate in recent games. An awakening of the Starling Marte bat is vital to the Mets' aspirations to be competitive offensively this year.