Seattle @ Houston Picks & Props

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Chas McCormick ranks in the 83rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Chas McCormick will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats. Chas McCormick's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved of late, increasing from 45.6% on the season to 75% over the last week.

Martin Maldonado pulls many of his flyballs (34.9% — 88th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the game's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter metrics in all categories, and Martin Maldonado will hold that advantage in today's game. Martin Maldonado has seen a notable gain in his exit velocity on flyballs recently; just compare his 103.1-mph average over the past 7 days to his seasonal mark of 92.8-mph. In the last two weeks' worth of games, Martin Maldonado's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 9.6% up to 14.3%.

Minute Maid Park's elevation is near sea-level, one of the lowest in the majors, which generally leads to lower offensive output. The Minute Maid Park roof is expected to be closed today, making weather conditions in this game -5° colder than the average outdoor game on the schedule today — favorable for pitching. J.P. France will hold the platoon advantage over Julio Rodriguez in today's matchup. Julio Rodriguez will be at a disadvantage playing on the visting team today. Compared to his seasonal angle of 7.9°, Julio Rodriguez has produced a noticeably lower launch angle (1°) in the last 14 days.

Jose Caballero pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (33.5% — 80th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Jose Caballero has made substantial gains with his Barrel% recently, bettering his 3.7% seasonal rate to 12.5% in the past week's worth of games. Jose Caballero has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 83-mph to 88.1-mph in the last 7 days. Compared to his seasonal average of 23.3°, Jose Caballero has significantly improved his launch angle in recent games, posting a 42° figure in the past week.

Minute Maid Park's elevation is near sea-level, one of the lowest in the majors, which generally leads to lower offensive output. The Minute Maid Park roof is expected to be closed today, making weather conditions in this game -5° colder than the average outdoor game on the schedule today — favorable for pitching. Bryce Miller will hold the platoon advantage over Yainer Diaz in today's matchup.

When it comes to his overall offensive skill, Alex Bregman ranks in the 95th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Alex Bregman is penciled in 2nd in the batting order today. Alex Bregman pulls a lot of his flyballs (36.8% — 95th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards MLB's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Alex Bregman will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to improve all of his stats.

Mike Ford will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against J.P. France in today's matchup. The Houston Astros have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Mike Ford has a strong chance of holding the platoon advantage against every reliever all game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Altuve in the 94th percentile when assessing his overall offensive talent. Jose Altuve is penciled in 1st in the batting order today. Jose Altuve pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (39% — 98th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards baseball's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Jose Altuve will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to boost all of his stats. Jose Altuve has been hot lately, cruising to a .413 wOBA over the past 14 days.

Kyle Tucker projects as the 15th-best hitter in Major League Baseball, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Kyle Tucker is projected to bat 3rd in the batting order in this game. Kyle Tucker will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Bryce Miller in today's game. Kyle Tucker will possess the home field advantage today, which figures to boost all of his stats. Kyle Tucker has made notable strides with his Barrel% recently, bettering his 9.8% seasonal rate to 15% in the last 14 days.

Yordan Alvarez projects as the 2nd-best hitter in the majors, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Yordan Alvarez is projected to bat 3rd in the batting order today. Minute Maid Park has the smallest outfield among all parks — generally good for home runs. Yordan Alvarez will have the handedness advantage over Bryce Miller today. Yordan Alvarez will have the benefit of the home field advantage today, which ought to improve all of his stats.

Cade Marlowe will hold the platoon advantage over J.P. France in today's matchup. The Houston Astros have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Cade Marlowe stands a good chance of holding the platoon advantage against every reliever all game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ty France in the 89th percentile when assessing his batting average talent. Ty France is penciled in 3rd in the batting order today. The shallowest left field dimensions in MLB are found in Minute Maid Park. Ty France has made notable strides with his Barrel% recently, improving his 6.5% seasonal rate to 15.2% in the past two weeks' worth of games. Ty France has been hot in recent games, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 86.9-mph to 90-mph in the past week's worth of games.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 93rd percentile as it relates to his BABIP talent. The shallowest left field dimensions in MLB are found in Minute Maid Park. Jeremy Pena will benefit from the home field advantage today, which figures to improve all of his stats. In terms of his batting average, Jeremy Pena has experienced some negative variance this year. His .252 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected Batting Average (xBA) at .271.

When assessing his overall offensive ability, Eugenio Suarez ranks in the 84th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Eugenio Suarez is penciled in 2nd in the lineup in this game. Eugenio Suarez pulls a lot of his flyballs (34.4% — 85th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. In the past week, Eugenio Suarez's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 94-mph over the course of the season to 108.4-mph of late. Eugenio Suarez's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved of late, increasing from 43.5% on the season to 66.7% over the past 7 days.

When it comes to his BABIP ability, Teoscar Hernandez is projected as the 18th-best hitter in the game by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Teoscar Hernandez is projected to bat 5th in the lineup in today's game. Teoscar Hernandez's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved lately, increasing from 46.6% on the season to 56.3% in the last week. Over the last 14 days, Teoscar Hernandez's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 14.2% up to 14.3%. Based on Statcast metrics, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average (.272) provides evidence that Teoscar Hernandez has had some very poor luck this year with his .248 actual batting average.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Mauricio Dubon in the 78th percentile when assessing his batting average talent. Home field advantage typically improves hitter stats across the board, and Mauricio Dubon will hold that advantage today. Mauricio Dubon has had bad variance on his side thus far when it comes to his batting average this year; his .263 BA is quite a bit lower than his .287 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

Cal Raleigh is penciled in 4th on the lineup card in today's game. Cal Raleigh has seen a big improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs lately; just compare his 97.8-mph average in the past two weeks' worth of games to his seasonal mark of 93.3-mph. Cal Raleigh's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved lately, increasing from 18.1% on the season to 25% in the past two weeks' worth of games. In the last two weeks, Cal Raleigh's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 13% up to 16.7%.