The set-up: The Giants and Mets each finished with identical 87-75 records, just like Baltimore and Toronto in the AL wild card matchup, which tied at 89-73. The Mets won four of the seven regular-season meetings and like with the Blue Jays, who were 10-9 against the Orioles, earned the homefield advantage for this winner-take-all game. The wild card game is familiar to the Giants, whose lineup Wednesday will likely feature six players, including starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner, who started the 2014 NL wild card game and won 8-0 with a four-hit shutout win. The defending NL champion Mets were 5 1/2 games behind in the race for the NL's second wild card on August 19 but had the best record in baseball (26-13) the rest of the way to reach the playoffs for a second straight season for only the second time in franchise history. The Mets' season-ending run was accomplished despite the fact that six Opening Day starters were already sidelined for the season or playing part-time roles due to injury or ineffectiveness.

The pitching matchup: Madison Bumgarner (15-9, 2.74 ERA) gest the ball for San Francisco (who else would get it?) and Noah Syndergaard (14-9, 2.60 ERA) takes the mound for the Mets.Bumgarner won at least 15 games for the fourth time in his career and posted his fourth consecutive sub-3.00 ERA. He had a 1.02 WHIP and opponents batted just .212 against him but the Giants were a modest 20-14 in his starts, plus the team was minus-$333 in those starts. However, his postseason record has been well-documented, going 7-3 with 2.14 ERA in 14 appearances, including 12 starts. He was unbelievable in the 2014 postseason, making six starts and one relief appearance, going 4-1 (team was 5-1) in his starts and closed out Game 7 of the World series with a five-inning save (1.03 ERA and a 45-6 KW ratio). Syndergaard finished third in the NL in ERA (Bumgarner was fourth) and fourth in strikeouts (Bumgarner was third) while putting together one of the top all-around seasons in the league. He is 1-2 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.12 WHIP in three career starts against the Giants.

The pick: Going against Bumgarner has the feel of "spitting into the wind" but one can't ignore that after reaching the All Star break with a MLB-best 57-33 record, the Giants went only 30-42 the rest of the way. It's the worst post-All-Star Break record for a playoff team since the wild card was implemented in 1995. Meanwhile, as already noted, the Mets were a MLB-best 26-13 from August 20 through the end of the regular season. The Giants' run of WorldSseries wins in even-numbered seasons (2010, 2012 and 2014) ends right here in the wild card game. The Mets are a 10* play.