Tampa Bay @ Houston Picks & Props

Martin Maldonado will have the handedness advantage over Shane McClanahan in today's matchup. Martin Maldonado pulls many of his flyballs (34.6% — 87th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards MLB's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today. Martin Maldonado will possess the home field advantage today, which ought to bolster all of his stats. In the past week's worth of games, Martin Maldonado's Barrel% has experienced a negative regression, plummeting from his seasonal rate of 7.5% down to 0%. Martin Maldonado has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 88-mph to 98.1-mph in the past 7 days.

Rene Pinto has gone over 0.5 in 4 of his last 10 games.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Wander Franco as the 11th-best batter in the game as it relates to his batting average talent. Wander Franco is projected to bat 2nd in the batting order in this matchup. HRs are generally more common at stadiums with shallow fences, and Minute Maid Park has the shallowest among all stadiums. This season, Wander Franco has experienced a significant improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs, now sitting at an average of 91.5 mph compared to last year's 87.7 mph mark. Wander Franco's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better in recent games, going from 14.5% on the season to 20% in the last 14 days.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Kyle Tucker ranks as the 14th-best batter in baseball. Kyle Tucker is penciled in 3rd in the batting order in this game. Kyle Tucker will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should boost all of his stats. Kyle Tucker has made notable strides with his Barrel% recently, upping his 9.3% seasonal rate to 16.7% over the past two weeks. Kyle Tucker has seen a notable gain in his exit velocity on flyballs in recent games; just compare his 94.2-mph average over the last 14 days to his seasonal average of 92-mph.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Chas McCormick ranks in the 78th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Chas McCormick will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Shane McClanahan in today's matchup. Home field advantage generally improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Chas McCormick will hold that advantage in today's matchup. In the past 14 days, Chas McCormick's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 95.1-mph over the course of the season to 100.9-mph in recent games. Last year, Chas McCormick had an average launch angle of 18.6° on his highest exit velocity balls, while this year it has significantly increased to 23°.

Isaac Paredes pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (41.6% — 100th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today.

When estimating his overall offensive ability, Alex Bregman ranks in the 95th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Alex Bregman is projected to hit 4th in the lineup today. Alex Bregman will have the handedness advantage over Shane McClanahan today. Alex Bregman pulls a lot of his flyballs (37.7% — 96th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Alex Bregman will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to improve all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Siri in the 85th percentile when estimating his BABIP talent. Jose Siri pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (35.5% — 92nd percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Yandy Diaz as the 9th-best batter in the league when estimating his batting average talent. Yandy Diaz is projected to hit 1st in the batting order in this matchup. Extreme flyball bats like Yandy Diaz usually hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Cristian Javier.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Abreu in the 88th percentile when it comes to his batting average ability. Jose Abreu will hold the platoon advantage over Shane McClanahan in today's game. Home field advantage typically boosts hitter stats across the board, and Jose Abreu will hold that advantage today. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Jose Abreu's true offensive talent to be a .341, providing some evidence that he has had bad variance on his side this year given the .058 discrepancy between that mark and his actual .283 wOBA.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Yordan Alvarez ranks as the 2nd-best hitter in the game. Yordan Alvarez is projected to hit 5th in the batting order in this game. HRs are generally more common at stadiums with shallow fences, and Minute Maid Park has the shallowest among all stadiums. Home field advantage typically boosts batter stats across the board, and Yordan Alvarez will hold that advantage in today's game. Yordan Alvarez's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls this year (17°) is significantly higher than his 12.8° mark last season.

Corey Julks will hold the platoon advantage over Shane McClanahan in today's matchup. Corey Julks pulls many of his flyballs (33.6% — 80th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today. Corey Julks will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats. Over the last week, Corey Julks's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 5% up to 16.7%. Corey Julks has seen a notable gain in his exit velocity on flyballs of late; just compare his 91.8-mph average over the past 7 days to his seasonal mark of 89.8-mph.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Jose Altuve ranks in the 93rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Jose Altuve is projected to bat 1st in the lineup today. Jose Altuve will hold the platoon advantage against Shane McClanahan in today's matchup. Jose Altuve pulls a lot of his flyballs (39.2% — 98th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards baseball's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Jose Altuve will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which should bolster all of his stats.

When estimating his overall offensive talent, Randy Arozarena ranks in the 96th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Randy Arozarena is projected to bat 4th in the lineup in today's game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 92nd percentile when it comes to his BABIP skill. Jeremy Pena has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this season (59% of the time), but he is projected to bat 2nd in the batting order today. Jeremy Pena will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Shane McClanahan in today's game. Jeremy Pena will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to boost all of his stats.

As it relates to his overall offensive talent, Brandon Lowe ranks in the 88th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Brandon Lowe is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in this game. Brandon Lowe will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Cristian Javier today. The Houston Astros have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Brandon Lowe can likely count on holding the platoon advantage against every reliever all game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Luke Raley in the 82nd percentile when estimating his overall offensive skill. Luke Raley is penciled in 3rd on the lineup card in today's game. Luke Raley will have the handedness advantage over Cristian Javier in today's matchup. The Houston Astros have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Luke Raley can likely count on holding the advantage against every reliever all game.

Christian Bethancourt has gone over 0.5 in 6 of his last 10 games.

Josh Lowe has gone over 0.5 in 9 of his last 10 games.