NEW YORK The National League wild-card game on Wednesday features a dream pitching matchup, with two of the best pitchers in the game taking the mound for the Senior Circuits past two pennant winners.The Mets, looking to start on a road to back-to-back World Series appearances for the first time in their history, send major league FIP leader Noah Syndergaard to the mound looking to build on last years postseason, when he won two of his three starts and struck out 26 hitters in 19 innings. For the Giants, its 2014 NLCS and World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner, toting a 7-3 career postseason record and 2.14 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 88 1/3innings.MORE: Both pitchers are aware of the excellence of their opposite numbers, and both stre sed that the important thing is to focus on their own performance.I cant control who Im facing out there, Syndergaard said. Thats not going to take away from Pedro Martinez Jersey my game or how to approach their hitters.Said Bumgarner: Im not pitching against Syndergaard. Im pitching against the Mets lineup. Youve got to find a way to get those guys out regardle s of whos on the mound for the Jimmie Foxx Jersey other team.MORE: Syndergaard and Bumgarner are focused, prepared, ready, willing and able. They are exactly the men their teams want on the mound for a winner-take-all game. It promises to be a doozy.And yet . . .Just last year, the National League wild-card game featured a marquee matchup between Gerrit Cole and Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta. Cole was downright ordinary, giving up four runs in five innings, while Arrieta pitched a five-hit shutout. A day earlier, Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel to sed six innings of three-hit ball in a shutout of the Yankees and their ace, Masahiro Tanaka, who gave up two runs in five unspectacular innings.These types of matchups just have a way of not fully paying off. Only 15 times in major league history have both pitchers in a sudden-death postseason game posted a of 60 or better and it hasnt always been the aces you would expect.FOSTER: Heres the list. Pitchers Game Scores are in parentheses. Home teams in caps.2011 NLDS Game 5: Cardinals 1, PHILLIES 0Chris Carpenter (84) struck out three in a three-hit shutout, outdueling Roy Halladay (72), who struck out seven over eight inningbut could not overcome a shaky start to the game as Rafael Furcal led off with a triple and Skip Schumaker followed with a double for the games only run.2008 ALCS Game 7: RAYS 3, Red Sox 1Matt Garza (75) gave up a home run to the second batter of the game, Dustin Pedroia, but allowed only one more hit, Jason Bays seventh-inning single. The Rays tied the game against Jon Lester (61) on Evan Longorias double in the fourth inning, then went ahead for good on Rocco Baldellis single in the fifth.PICKS: 2006 NLCS Game 7: Cardinals 3, METS 1Neither starter factored into the decision after Oliver Perez (62) held St. Louis to one run on four hits over six innings, dueling Jeff Suppan (66), who Bobby Doerr Jersey gave up just a run on two hits over seven. The deciding blow was Yadier Molinas pennant-winning two-run blast off Aaron Heilman in the ninth inning at Shea.2001 World Series Game 7: DIAMONDBACKS 3, Yankees 2Roger Clemens (64) struck out 10 in 6 1/3innings for New York in a cla sic duel with Curt Schilling (67), who allowed two runs on six hits with nine strikeouts in 7 1/3innings and left on the short end of a 2-1 score before Arizona rallied Martin Perez Jersey against Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning to win it all.2001 NLDS Game 5: DIAMONDBACKS 2, Cardinals 1An even better performance by Schilling (79), who gave up a game-tying homer to J.D. Drew in the eighth inning and only five other hits while striking out nine. Matt Morris (67) pitched valiantly for eight innings, striking out six while allowing one run on seven hits, but Arizona prevailed against the St. Louis bullpen on Tony Womacks walkoff single.1991 World Series: TWINS 1, Braves 0 (10 innings)Jack Morris (84) went the distance for Minnesota, scattering seven hits with eight strikeouts in one of the greatest big-game performances ever. John Smoltz (69) lasted 7 1/3innings in the dueling shutout, giving up six hits with four strikeouts after his shutout of the Pirates in Game 7 of the NLCS had gotten Atlanta to the World Series.1981 NLCS Game 5: Dodgers 2, EXPOS 1At the peak of Fernandomania, Fernando Valenzuela (77) showed that he was for real, holding Montreal to one run on three hits with six strikeouts in 8 2/3innings. Ray Burris (68) allowed only one run himself over eight innings before Rick Mondays homer off Steve Rogers in the ninth, in what came to be known as Blue Monday.1981 NLDS Game 5: Expos 3, PHILLIES 0The thing people forget about Blue Monday is that eight days earlier, Rogers (76) had pitched a six-hitter in Philadelphia, outdueling Steve Carlton (60) to get Montreal to the NLCS in the first-ever division series, nece sitated by the 1981 strike that Craig Kimbrel Jersey split the season into two halves. Rogers even drove in two of the runs, breaking the scorele s tie with a bases-loaded single off Carlton in the fifth inning.1972 ALCS Game 5: As 2, TIGERS 1Blue Moon Odom (62) allowed only an unearned run on two hits over five innings, turning things over to Vida Blue for a four-inning save. The only earned run that Oakland got against Woodie Fryman (70) in eight innings came when Reggie Jackson stole home. The As snapped the 1-1 tie when Gene Tenace singled home George Hendrick, who had reached on an error by Dick McAuliffe in the fourth inning.MORE: 1971 World Series Game 7: Pirates 2, ORIOLES 1Roberto Clemente homered off Mike Cuellar (72) in the fourth inning, and Jose Pagan singled home Willie Stargell in the eighth for all the run support Steve Chris Sale Jersey Bla s (78) needed in a four-hitter. Stunningly, Earl Weaver had pinchhitter Tom Shopay bunt with runners on first and second and nobody out against Bla s in the eighth inning the Orioles wound up getting only one run out of the inning, on a groundout by Don Buford before Davey Johnson grounded out to end the threat.1968 World Series Game 7: Tigers 4, CARDINALS 1Bob Gibson (62) had a 1.12 ERA for the season, allowing as many as four earned runs only twice in 34 starts, which included 28 complete games. He picked an awful time to do it again, as Detroit rallied for three runs in the seventh and tacked on one more in the ninth. One out from being blanked by Mickey Lolich (74), Mike Shannon hit a consolation dinger for St. Louis.1940 World Series Game 7: REDS 2, Tigers 1Detroit got an early run off Paul Derringer (69) when third baseman Billy Werbers error allowed Billy Sullivan to score in the third inni