New York @ Houston Picks & Props

When it comes to his overall offensive talent, Alex Bregman ranks in the 95th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Alex Bregman is projected to hit 2nd in the batting order in this matchup. Alex Bregman pulls many of his flyballs (36.7% — 95th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards MLB's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Home field advantage generally boosts batter stats across the board, and Alex Bregman will hold that advantage today. Alex Bregman has seen a sizeable gain in his exit velocity of late; just compare his 90.4-mph average over the past two weeks to his seasonal 88.4-mph figure.

Martin Maldonado pulls many of his flyballs (34.9% — 89th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Home field advantage generally boosts batter metrics in all categories, and Martin Maldonado will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Martin Maldonado has seen a big increase in his exit velocity recently; just compare his 90.7-mph average in the past 14 days to his seasonal 88.1-mph figure. Compared to his seasonal average of 17.5°, Martin Maldonado has significantly improved his launch angle lately, posting a 28.3° angle in the last week.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Yordan Alvarez ranks as the 2nd-best batter in the league. Yordan Alvarez is penciled in 3rd on the lineup card today. Minute Maid Park has the shallowest fences in the league — generally good for long-balls. Yordan Alvarez will have the handedness advantage against Michael King today. The New York Yankees have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Yordan Alvarez can likely count on holding the advantage against every reliever all game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Chas McCormick in the 84th percentile as it relates to his BABIP talent. Home field advantage typically improves hitter stats in all categories, and Chas McCormick will hold that advantage today. Chas McCormick has seen a notable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs recently; just compare his 97.5-mph average in the past week to his seasonal mark of 95.3-mph. Last year, Chas McCormick had an average launch angle of 18.6° on his hardest-hit balls, while this year it has significantly increased to 23.2°. By putting up a .383 wOBA (a leading indicator of offensive ability) this year, Chas McCormick is ranked in the 95th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 94th percentile when estimating his BABIP skill. Minute Maid Park has the shallowest fences in the league — generally good for long-balls. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats in all categories, and Jeremy Pena will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Jeremy Pena has had some very poor luck with his batting average this year; his .260 figure is a good deal lower than his .275 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

Kyle Tucker projects as the 16th-best hitter in the game, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Kyle Tucker is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in this game. Kyle Tucker will hold the platoon advantage over Michael King in today's matchup. The New York Yankees have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Kyle Tucker can likely count on holding the platoon advantage against every reliever all game. Home field advantage generally improves hitter metrics across the board, and Kyle Tucker will hold that advantage in today's matchup.

Compared to his seasonal figure of 13.3°, Oswald Peraza has produced a noticeably lower launch angle (4°) over the last two weeks. Despite posting a .223 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Oswald Peraza has experienced some negative variance given the .083 gap between that mark and his estimated true talent wOBA of .306. Oswald Peraza has displayed impressive plate discipline since the start of last season, grading out in the 76th percentile with a 2.26 K/BB rate.

Jose Abreu's batting average talent is projected to be in the 86th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Jose Abreu is projected to bat 5th on the lineup card in today's game. Home field advantage generally bolsters batter metrics in all categories, and Jose Abreu will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Jose Abreu has made big improvements with his Barrel% lately, upping his 7.6% seasonal rate to 18.2% in the past 14 days. Jose Abreu's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better lately, rising from 44.9% on the season to 59.1% in the past two weeks' worth of games.

Mauricio Dubon's batting average ability is projected to be in the 81st percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Mauricio Dubon will hold the home field advantage today, which should boost all of his stats. Mauricio Dubon's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls of late (23.5° over the last two weeks) is considerably higher than his 6° seasonal mark. Utilizing Statcast metrics, Mauricio Dubon grades out in the 88th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average this year at .285. Mauricio Dubon has compiled a .274 batting average this year, placing in the 80th percentile.

Jasson Dominguez is projected to hit 3rd in the lineup in this matchup.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Everson Pereira in the 88th percentile as it relates to his BABIP talent. Minute Maid Park has the shallowest fences in the league — generally good for long-balls. Everson Pereira has been hot lately, notching a a 25% Barrel% (an advanced standard to assess power) in the last 7 days. In the last two weeks, Everson Pereira has averaged an impressive 99-mph exit velocity on his flyballs, an advanced indicator of home run potential. Everson Pereira has been zeroed in on the ideal launch angle for home runs of late, hitting balls between 23° and 34° 25% of the time over the past 7 days.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Gleyber Torres in the 90th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Gleyber Torres is projected to hit 4th in the batting order today. Over the past 7 days, Gleyber Torres's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 8.7% up to 18.8%. Gleyber Torres has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 89.6-mph to 92.6-mph in the past two weeks. Over the last two weeks, Gleyber Torres's 32.4% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 19%.

Anthony Volpe is projected to bat 5th in the batting order today. Minute Maid Park has the shallowest fences in the league — generally good for long-balls. In the last week, Anthony Volpe's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 9.7% up to 18.8%. Anthony Volpe has been hot lately, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 88.8-mph to 92.5-mph over the past week. Compared to his seasonal average of 15°, Anthony Volpe has significantly improved his launch angle recently, posting a 24.4° figure in the last two weeks.

Kyle Higashioka has gone over 0.5 in 6 of his last 10 games.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa has gone over 0.5 in 5 of his last 10 games.