Houston @ Los Angeles props

Shohei Ohtani projects as the 5th-best hitter in the league, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Shohei Ohtani is projected to hit 2nd in the lineup in today's game. It is anticipated that we will see a Pitchers Umpire (Cory Blaser) calling pitches today. The leading projection system (THE BAT) profiles Angel Stadium as the 5th-worst stadium in Major League Baseball for batting average. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT) ranks Angel Stadium as the 8th-worst ballpark in the majors for righty batting average. The 10th-deepest left field dimensions in MLB are found in Angel Stadium. Playing on the road typically lessens hitter metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which should be the case for Mauricio Dubon in today's game. Mauricio Dubon's average launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls this season (6.2°) is quite a bit lower than his 10.6° angle last season. Over the last 7 days, Mauricio Dubon's 0% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 13.7%.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. The Houston Astros don't have any same-handed relievers in their bullpen, so Mike Moustakas is guaranteed to hold the platoon advantage against every reliever the whole game. Extreme flyball hitters like Mike Moustakas tend to be more successful against extreme groundball pitchers like Framber Valdez. Home field advantage generally boosts batter stats across the board, and Mike Moustakas will hold that advantage today. Mike Moustakas's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased from last year to this one, rising from 37.8% to 48.1%.

Chas McCormick's BABIP talent is projected in the 75th percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Chas McCormick will have the handedness advantage over Reid Detmers in today's matchup. Chas McCormick has made substantial improvements with his Barrel% recently, upping his 9.9% seasonal rate to 18.8% in the past 14 days. Chas McCormick has seen a big gain in his exit velocity on flyballs recently; just compare his 96.7-mph average over the past 14 days to his seasonal figure of 93.4-mph.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Martin Maldonado will have the handedness advantage against Reid Detmers in today's matchup. Martin Maldonado has made big improvements with his Barrel% lately, upping his 8.5% seasonal rate to 23.1% in the last 14 days. In the past two weeks, Martin Maldonado's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 91.7-mph over the course of the season to 98.3-mph lately. Over the last two weeks, Martin Maldonado has significantly improved the launch angle on his hardest-hit balls: 35° compared to his seasonal mark of 17.9°.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Yainer Diaz in the 89th percentile when estimating his batting average talent. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Yainer Diaz will hold the platoon advantage against Reid Detmers today. Extreme groundball bats like Yainer Diaz generally hit better against extreme flyball pitchers like Reid Detmers. Over the past 14 days, Yainer Diaz's 26.9% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 23.6%.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Corey Julks will hold the platoon advantage against Reid Detmers in today's game. In the past two weeks' worth of games, Corey Julks's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 89.7-mph over the course of the season to 95.9-mph of late. Corey Julks's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased recently, rising from 50.6% on the season to 60.9% over the last two weeks. Corey Julks is in the 95th percentile when it comes to hitting balls between -4° and 26°, the launch angle range that tends to best-produce base hits (50.6% rate this year).

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Kyle Tucker ranks as the 16th-best hitter in baseball. Kyle Tucker is projected to hit 3rd in the batting order in this game. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Over the last 7 days, Kyle Tucker's 75% rate of hitting balls at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 46%. Kyle Tucker has had bad variance on his side thus far when it comes to his wOBA this year; his .364 rate is quite a bit lower than his .384 Expected wOBA, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. The switch-hitting Luis Rengifo will have the advantage of batting from from his strong side (0) today against Framber Valdez. Luis Rengifo will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should bolster all of his stats. Luis Rengifo has experienced some negative variance in regards to his batting average this year; his .217 mark is a good deal lower than his .235 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. The Houston Astros don't have any same-handed RPs in their bullpen, so Matt Thaiss is guaranteed to never face a bullpen mismatch the whole game. Home field advantage generally improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Matt Thaiss will hold that advantage today. By putting up a 1.68 K/BB rate this year, Matt Thaiss has shown strong plate discipline, placing in the 85th percentile. Matt Thaiss has posted a .327 BABIP since the start of last season, checking in at the 81st percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Alex Bregman in the 93rd percentile when estimating his overall offensive ability. Alex Bregman is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in this matchup. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Alex Bregman will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Reid Detmers in today's matchup. In the last week's worth of games, Alex Bregman's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 5.1% up to 16.7%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Zach Neto in the 84th percentile when estimating his batting average talent. Zach Neto is penciled in 1st in the batting order today, which would be an upgrade from his 81% rate of hitting in the top-half of the batting order this year. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Zach Neto will have the handedness advantage against Framber Valdez in today's matchup. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter metrics in all categories, and Zach Neto will hold that advantage today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Abreu in the 88th percentile when estimating his batting average ability. Jose Abreu is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in today's game. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Jose Abreu will have the handedness advantage over Reid Detmers today. Over the last two weeks, Jose Abreu has significantly improved the launch angle on his hardest-hit balls: 30.9° compared to his seasonal mark of 8.1°.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 93rd percentile when estimating his BABIP talent. Jeremy Pena is projected to bat 2nd in the lineup today, which would be an upgrade from his 63% rate of hitting in the top-half of the lineup this year. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Jeremy Pena will have the handedness advantage against Reid Detmers in today's game. Jeremy Pena has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs in recent games; just compare his 98.1-mph average in the past 7 days to his seasonal mark of 91.1-mph.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Taylor Ward in the 95th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive skill. Taylor Ward is projected to hit 3rd in the lineup in this game. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Taylor Ward will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Framber Valdez today. Taylor Ward will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should boost all of his stats.

Eduardo Escobar has primarily hit in the back-half of the batting order this year (88% of the time), but he is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in this game. The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. The switch-hitting Eduardo Escobar will get to bat from his good side (0) today against Framber Valdez. Extreme groundball bats like Eduardo Escobar tend to perform better against extreme flyball pitchers like Framber Valdez. Eduardo Escobar will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.1-mph in this game, the 2nd-strongest of the day for bats. The switch-hitting Andrew Velazquez will have the advantage of batting from from his better side (0) today against Framber Valdez. Home field advantage generally bolsters hitter metrics in all categories, and Andrew Velazquez will hold that advantage today. Andrew Velazquez has been unlucky in regards to his batting average since the start of last season; his .197 figure is a good deal lower than his .220 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

The wind projects to be blowing out to CF at 9.2-mph in this game, the strongest of the day for bats. Hunter Renfroe will have the handedness advantage over Framber Valdez in today's matchup. Hunter Renfroe will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should boost all of his stats. Hunter Renfroe's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls lately (25.5° in the past two weeks' worth of games) is quite a bit higher than his 10.1° seasonal mark.