Oakland @ St. Louis Picks & Props

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Nolan Arenado in the 7th percentile as it relates to his BABIP ability. Spenser Watkins will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Nolan Arenado in today's matchup. In today's matchup, Nolan Arenado is at a disadvantage facing the league's 6th-deepest LF fences given that he hits his flyballs to the pull field at a 42.5% rate (100th percentile). Out of every team playing today, the 2nd-best infield defense is that of the Oakland Athletics. Nolan Arenado's exit velocity on flyballs has decreased in recent games; his 92-mph seasonal average has fallen to 87.4-mph in the past week's worth of games.

Jordan Walker is projected to bat 6th in the batting order in this game. Busch Stadium has the 5th-most fair ground among all stadiums — generally bad for HRs. Spenser Watkins will have the handedness advantage against Jordan Walker in today's matchup. Out of every team playing today, the 2nd-best infield defense is that of the Oakland Athletics. Jordan Walker has negatively regressed with his Barrel% in recent games; his 6.9% seasonal rate has lowered to 0% in the last week's worth of games.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Tommy Edman in the 88th percentile when estimating his batting average ability. Tommy Edman will have the benefit of the home field advantage today, which should improve all of his stats. Over the last week, Tommy Edman's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 5% up to 18.8%. Tommy Edman has seen a sizeable increase in his exit velocity recently; just compare his 91.8-mph average over the past 7 days to his seasonal 89.6-mph average.

Zack Gelof's BABIP talent is projected in the 93rd percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Zack Gelof is projected to hit 2nd in the lineup in this matchup. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. Over the last 14 days, Zack Gelof has improved his Barrel% substantially, increasing it from his seasonal rate of 16.7% to 22.6%. Zack Gelof has been hot lately, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 92.7-mph to 94.9-mph in the past two weeks' worth of games.

J.J. Bleday is projected to bat 1st in the lineup in this matchup. J.J. Bleday will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Dakota Hudson today. Extreme flyball batters like J.J. Bleday generally hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Dakota Hudson. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 4th-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. J.J. Bleday has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs recently; just compare his 101.8-mph average over the last week to his seasonal EV of 93.2-mph.

Tyler Soderstrom will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Dakota Hudson in today's game. Tyler Soderstrom hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (38.4% — 78th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting out towards baseball's 7th-shallowest CF fences today. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. Tyler Soderstrom has made big improvements with his Barrel% lately, improving his 4.5% seasonal rate to 10.5% in the past 14 days. Over the past 7 days, Tyler Soderstrom's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 92.6-mph over the course of the season to 94.6-mph recently.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Lars Nootbaar in the 91st percentile when assessing his overall offensive talent. Lars Nootbaar is projected to bat 1st in the batting order in this matchup. Lars Nootbaar will hold the platoon advantage over Spenser Watkins today. Lars Nootbaar hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (38.9% — 88th percentile) and is fortunate to face the league's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Lars Nootbaar will hold the home field advantage today, which should bolster all of his stats.

Home field advantage generally bolsters hitter stats in all categories, and Taylor Motter will hold that advantage in today's game.

When it comes to his overall offensive talent, Brent Rooker ranks in the 78th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Brent Rooker is projected to hit 3rd on the lineup card in this game. Brent Rooker hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39% — 89th percentile) and will have a big advantage facing MLB's 7th-shallowest CF fences today. Extreme groundball bats like Brent Rooker usually hit better against extreme flyball pitchers like Dakota Hudson. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Tyler O'Neill ranks in the 91st percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Tyler O'Neill has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this season (75% of the time), but he is projected to hit 5th in the batting order in this matchup. Tyler O'Neill hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (38.4% — 78th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards the game's 7th-shallowest CF fences today. Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics across the board, and Tyler O'Neill will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Tyler O'Neill's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better from last season to this one, rising from 14.7% to 19.4%.

Tony Kemp is projected to hit 1st in the batting order in today's game. Tony Kemp will have the handedness advantage against Dakota Hudson in today's game. Tony Kemp hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (40.9% — 100th percentile) and will have a big advantage facing MLB's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. In comparison to his 84.2-mph average last year, Tony Kemp's exit velocity has noticeably risen this season, now sitting at 86.9 mph.

Out of all the teams on the slate today, the weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. In the last two weeks, Shea Langeliers's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 95.1-mph over the course of the season to 99.1-mph of late. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Shea Langeliers's true offensive skill to be a .313, implying that he has had bad variance on his side this year given the .039 difference between that mark and his actual .274 wOBA.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Esteury Ruiz in the 82nd percentile when assessing his BABIP ability. Esteury Ruiz hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (38.5% — 81st percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards baseball's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. Esteury Ruiz has seen a big gain in his exit velocity recently; just compare his 84.7-mph average in the past 14 days to his seasonal 82.7-mph figure. Esteury Ruiz's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved lately, increasing from 15.1% on the season to 35.7% in the last two weeks.

Spenser Watkins will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Paul Goldschmidt today. Paul Goldschmidt has a 78th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34.5%) and has the misfortune of hitting them in the direction of the league's 2nd-deepest RF fences today. Out of every team playing today, the 2nd-best infield defense is that of the Oakland Athletics. Paul Goldschmidt has been cold of late, with his seasonal exit velocity of 91.3-mph dropping to 85-mph in the past 14 days. Paul Goldschmidt's launch angle lately (5.1° in the last two weeks' worth of games) is considerably worse than his 12.1° seasonal angle.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Seth Brown in the 81st percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Seth Brown is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in this game. Seth Brown will hold the platoon advantage against Dakota Hudson in today's game. Seth Brown hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (39.5% — 94th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards MLB's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup. Extreme groundball hitters like Seth Brown generally hit better against extreme flyball pitchers like Dakota Hudson.

Alec Burleson's batting average talent is projected to be in the 79th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Alec Burleson has primarily hit in the back-half of the batting order this year (59% of the time), but he is penciled in 4th on the lineup card in this matchup. Alec Burleson will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Spenser Watkins in today's matchup. Home field advantage generally bolsters hitter stats in all categories, and Alec Burleson will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Alec Burleson's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased recently, increasing from 14.7% on the season to 23.1% over the last 14 days.

Jordan Diaz's batting average talent is projected to be in the 81st percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Jordan Diaz is penciled in 5th on the lineup card in this game. Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. This year, Jordan Diaz has an average exit velocity of 91.1 mph, which is among the best in baseball at the 84th percentile.

Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest outfield defense belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals. This season, Nick Allen has experienced a significant improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs, now sitting at an average of 89.2 mph compared to last year's 85.9 mph mark. Based on Statcast metrics, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average (.263) may lead us to conclude that Nick Allen has had some very poor luck this year with his .202 actual batting average.

Home field advantage typically bolsters batter metrics in all categories, and Andrew Knizner will hold that advantage in today's game. The Barrel% of Andrew Knizner has significantly improved, with an increase from 3.5% last year to 10.4% this season. Andrew Knizner has seen a big increase in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 93.3-mph average to last year's 87.5-mph figure.