New York Mets vs San Francisco Giants Prediction & Match Preview - May 23rd | MLB Season 2022

The New York Mets continue their trip from the Big Apple to the Golden Gate Bridge as they open a series with the 2021 National League West Champions in the San Francisco Giants on Monday, May 23. The two clubs are doing everything they can to round themselves into playoff form this point in the 2022 regular season. Though, no starting pitchers have been announced at this point, the New York Mets will likely send southpaw David Peterson to the hill while the home team will counter with right hander Alex Cobb. This will be the second time this year the two clubs will face each other.

Match Details

Fixture: New York Mets vs San Francisco Giants | MLB Regular Season 2022

Date and Time: Monday, May 23 at 9:45 PM EDT

Location: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

New York Mets Preview:

This will be the second leg of a West Coast road trip for the New York Mets, who are having their depth tested. With co-aces Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer shut down with injuries and budding star Tylor Megill on the Injured List, due to an arm injury, the team will heavily rely on their surplus of starting pitchers to navigate this road schedule. The team won their first matchup with the San Francisco Giants, taking three out of four, and have seen their division lead over the World Series Champion Atlanta Braves grow to 7.5 games in the National League East. The club has done very well on the road this season, posting a 13-6 record away from the friendly confines of Citi Field and will hope to build on that.

Key Player- Francisco Lindor:

St. Louis Cardinals v New York Mets - Game Two

The superstar shortstop has been incredibly hot and cold this year, starting the year with a flourish but cooling off significantly as April transitioned to May. However, there's reason to believe the New York Mets' highest-paid player is beginning to turn it around as he has produced a .974 OPS over his last seven games, thanks in large part to a .500 on base percentage.

Francisco Lindor is the National League leader for all SS’s with a 1.1 WAR. #LGM

Lindor acknowledged that, with the lack of high quality pitching, the offense is prepared to shoulder a heavier load, and it appears he is up to the task of leading that offense as they look to hold their commanding lead in the division.

New York Mets Projected Lineup:

1. Brandon Nimmo, CF
2. Mark Canha, LF
3. Francisco Lindor, SS
4. Pete Alonso, 1B
5. J.D. Davis, DH
6. Jeff McNeil, 2B
7. Starling Marte, RF
8. Eduardo Escobar, 3B
9. Tomas Nido, C

San Francisco Giants Preview

Gabe Kapler's club has been performing as expected, entering the season. The San Francisco Giants have one of the best records in baseball. The team is second in Major League Baseball in runs per game. However, the Giants currently reside in third place in what's been deemed the most competitive division in baseball, the National League West. The team is behind both the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers, as they currently are 4.5 games out of the NL West lead. The club has struggled among playoff contenders, posting an 8-11 record entering Saturday against teams that would make the playoffs if they ended today, which may be troublesome as the host a Mets team with the best record in the National League.

Key Player- Mike Yastrzemski

Colorado Rockies v San Francisco Giants

The grandson of Hall of Fame Boston Red Sox left fielder Carl Yastzemski has been a key piece of the San Francisco Giants offense this year. Since returning from injury, the outfielder has produced an OPS of .950 and clubbed a slugging percentage .540 in the month of May.

Mike Yastrzemski said his time on the COVID IL "was a way that I could reset mentally." In 14 games pre-COVID: .267/.340/.356...In 14 games post-COVID: .313/.407/.542

A late bloomer, Yastzemski's offensive prowess has been a key part in helping the Giants dominant National League pitching, and he has performed reasonably well against the New York Mets in his career.

San Francisco Giants Projected Lineup

1. Austin Slater, CF
2. Mike Yastrzemski, RF
3. Darin Ruf, LF
4. Brandon Belt, 1B
5. Wilmer Flores, DH
6. Evan Longoria, 3B
7. Brandon Crawford, SS
8. Thairo Estrada, 2B
9. Joey Bart, C

New York Mets vs San Francisco Giants Prediction

Both of the league's top offenses will be on display here, though they have vastly different ways of scoring runs. Expect David Peterson to fall prey to the long-ball against the home team; however, the Mets' propensity to be pesky in the late innings will make this a closely contested matchup. That will leave things up to the bullpen where the Mets have been slightly better than the Giants this year, leading New York to take the series opener.