Kansas City @ St. Louis Picks & Props

Nick Pratto is projected to bat 1st in the lineup today. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Nick Pratto will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Miles Mikolas today. In terms of optimizing the launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls, Nick Pratto has performed well with a 17.6° figure that ranks among the top in Major League Baseball since the start of last season (83rd percentile). Posting a .341 BABIP since the start of last season, Nick Pratto finds himself in the 87th percentile.

THE BAT X projects Drew Waters as the 12th-best batter in MLB as it relates to his BABIP skill. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 86°. Oscar Mercado will possess the home field advantage today, which ought to improve all of his stats.

THE BAT X projects Maikel Garcia in the 87th percentile as it relates to his BABIP talent. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Comparing his seasonal average exit velocity of 91.6 mph to a recent 14-day average of 93.8 mph, Maikel Garcia has shown a notable increase. Maikel Garcia's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better in recent games, going from 51.7% on the season to 63.6% over the last two weeks. Grading out in the 75th percentile with a sprint speed of 28.05 ft/sec this year, Maikel Garcia displays remarkable toolsyism.

Despite having a 95th percentile opposite-field rate of 39.2% on his flyballs, Brendan Donovan had the misfortune of hitting them towards baseball's 6th-deepest LF fences in today's matchup. The Kansas City Royals outfield defense profiles as the 5th-best of all teams on the slate today. Brendan Donovan has notched a .264 BABIP this year, grading out in the 24th percentile.

Paul Goldschmidt projects as the 11th-best batter in the majors, via THE BAT X. Paul Goldschmidt is penciled in 2nd on the lineup card today. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Paul Goldschmidt will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to improve all of his stats. In the past 7 days, Paul Goldschmidt has remarkably improved his Barrel% by elevating his seasonal rate from 14.8% to 20%.

When assessing his batting average ability, Tommy Edman is ranked in the 90th percentile by THE BAT X projects. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Tommy Edman will benefit from the home field advantage today, which figures to boost all of his stats. In the last 7 days, Tommy Edman has remarkably improved his Barrel% by elevating his seasonal rate from 6.4% to 17.6%. In the past two weeks, Tommy Edman's exit velocity has notably risen, with an figure of 91.1 mph compared to his season-long 88.6 mph EV.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Nicky Lopez will have the handedness advantage against Miles Mikolas in today's game. Nicky Lopez has suffered from bad luck when it comes to his batting average since the start of last season; his .232 mark is quite a bit lower than his .263 Expected Batting Average (based on THE BAT X's interpretation of Statcast data). When it comes to plate discipline, Nicky Lopez's talent is quite impressive, putting up a 1.94 K/BB rate since the start of last season while ranking in in the 86th percentile.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Michael Massey will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Miles Mikolas in today's matchup. Comparing his seasonal 90.8-mph figure to his 98.7-mph average in the past week's games, Michael Massey's exit velocity has significantly gaind in recent times. Compared to his launch angle of 15.8° last season, Michael Massey has significantly improved with a angle of 19.7° this year. The recent increase in Michael Massey's hitting performance can be attributed to his ability to hit the ball within the base hit-optimizing launch angle range of -4° to 26°, with his percentage rising from 46.2% on the season to 66.7% in the past week.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Juan Yepez will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which should bolster all of his stats. There has been a significant improvement in Juan Yepez's launch angle from last season's 17.2° to 27.4° this season.

THE BAT X projects Salvador Perez in the 88th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Salvador Perez is projected to bat 3rd on the lineup card today. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Salvador Perez's launch angle lately (36° over the last 7 days) is significantly higher than his 16.5° seasonal angle. Posting a .282 Expected Batting Average (an advanced metric created by THE BAT X utilizing Statcast data) this year , Salvador Perez finds himself in the 84th percentile.

Vinnie Pasquantino pulls many of his flyballs (33.9% — 82nd percentile) and and has the misfortune of hitting them towards baseball's 2nd-deepest RF fences in today's matchup. Vinnie Pasquantino will be at a disadvantage playing on the visting team today. The average exit velocity of Vinnie Pasquantino has dropped off recently from 89.6 mph to 84.9 mph in the past two weeks. Vinnie Pasquantino has posted a .259 BABIP this year, checking in at the 23rd percentile.

THE BAT X projects MJ Melendez in the 80th percentile when assessing his overall offensive skill. MJ Melendez is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in this game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. MJ Melendez will hold the platoon advantage over Miles Mikolas in today's matchup. MJ Melendez has seen a big gain in his exit velocity this season; just compare his 94.5-mph average to last year's 90.7-mph EV.

THE BAT X projects Nolan Gorman in the 86th percentile when estimating his overall offensive skill. Nolan Gorman is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup in this matchup. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Nolan Gorman will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Zack Greinke in today's game. Nolan Gorman will possess the home field advantage today, which should improve all of his stats.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Paul DeJong will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which should improve all of his stats. If you compare Paul DeJong's current average exit velocity of 91.6 mph on flyballs to last year's 95.8 mph, it is clear that there has been a significant increase. The average launch angle of Paul DeJong on his highest exit velocity balls has significantly improved in the past two weeks, measuring at 28.1° compared to his seasonal mark of 18.8°.

In terms of his overall offensive capskill, Willson Contreras ranks in the 95th percentile according to THE BAT X's projects. Willson Contreras is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in this game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Willson Contreras will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats. The recent increase in Willson Contreras's hitting performance can be attributed to his ability to hit the ball within the base hit-maximizing launch angle range of -4° to 26°, with his percentage rising from 43.6% on the season to 66.7% in the past week.

Nolan Arenado is projected to bat 4th on the lineup card in this matchup. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Nolan Arenado will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to bolster all of his stats.

THE BAT X projects Alec Burleson in the 77th percentile when it comes to his batting average skill. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the highest temperatures on the slate today at 87°. Alec Burleson will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Zack Greinke in today's game. Alec Burleson will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to improve all of his stats. When it comes to his batting average, Alec Burleson this year. His .234 BA falls considerably below THE BAT X's version of Statcast-based Expected Batting Average (xBA) at .307.

Bobby Witt Jr. has gone over 0.5 in 6 of his last 10 games.