Chicago @ St. Louis Picks & Props

Lance Lynn will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Nico Hoerner today. Nico Hoerner has a 91st percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (37%) and has the misfortune of hitting them in the direction of the game's 2nd-deepest RF fences today. Among all the teams on the slate today, the 4th-best infield defense is that of the the St. Louis Cardinals. Playing on the road typically lowers batter stats across the board due to the lack of home field advantage, which ought to be the case for Nico Hoerner in today's game. Nico Hoerner's exit velocity on flyballs has decreased recently; his 89.1-mph seasonal figure has dropped to 86.8-mph over the past 14 days.

Hitting from the same side that Hayden Wesneski throws from, Masyn Winn will not have the upper hand today. Masyn Winn has a 75th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (33.7%) and has the misfortune of hitting them in the direction of MLB's 2nd-deepest RF fences today. Masyn Winn has been cold lately, with his seasonal exit velocity of 86.1-mph dropping to 82.3-mph in the last week's worth of games. Masyn Winn's exit velocity on flyballs has declined this season; his 89.7-mph EV last year has dropped off to 86-mph. Masyn Winn's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has decreased recently, going from 45.3% on the season to 17.6% in the past week.

11% of the time that Alec Burleson has started against a northpaw this year, he has been pinch hit for. Alec Burleson's average exit velocity has dropped off in recent games; his 89.5-mph seasonal mark has lowered to 81.1-mph over the last 7 days.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Lars Nootbaar in the 93rd percentile when it comes to his overall offensive talent. Lars Nootbaar is projected to hit 4th on the lineup card in today's game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Lars Nootbaar will have the handedness advantage over Hayden Wesneski today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Pete Crow-Armstrong in the 92nd percentile as it relates to his BABIP ability. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Hitting from the opposite that Lance Lynn throws from, Pete Crow-Armstrong will have an advantage today.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Nolan Gorman will have the handedness advantage over Hayden Wesneski in today's game. Nolan Gorman may have an advantage against every reliever from start to finish, since the bullpen of the Chicago Cubs only has 1 same-handed RP. Home field advantage typically boosts hitter stats across the board, and Nolan Gorman will hold that advantage in today's matchup.

Michael Busch is penciled in 2nd on the lineup card today. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Michael Busch will hold the platoon advantage over Lance Lynn in today's game. This year, Michael Busch's flyball exit velocity (an advanced standard to evaluate power) is in the 86th percentile at 95.1 mph.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Brendan Donovan in the 92nd percentile when estimating his batting average ability. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Brendan Donovan will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Hayden Wesneski today. The Chicago Cubs have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Brendan Donovan stands a good chance of holding the platoon advantage against every reliever all game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ian Happ in the 89th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Ian Happ is penciled in 4th on the lineup card today. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. As a switch-hitter who bats better from the 0 side of the dish, Ian Happ will get to bat from his strong side against Lance Lynn in this game.

When it comes to his overall offensive talent, Willson Contreras ranks in the 95th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Willson Contreras is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup in today's game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Willson Contreras hits many of his flyballs to center field (39.2% — 94th percentile) and will have a big advantage facing MLB's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Miles Mastrobuoni in the 77th percentile when assessing his BABIP ability. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Miles Mastrobuoni will hold the platoon advantage over Lance Lynn today. Miles Mastrobuoni hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39.5% — 97th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting out towards MLB's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Pedro Pages hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (38.3% — 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. Pedro Pages will hold the home field advantage today, which figures to improve all of his stats.

As it relates to his overall offensive talent, Christopher Morel ranks in the 84th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Christopher Morel is projected to bat 5th in the lineup in this game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Over the last two weeks, Christopher Morel's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 95.4-mph over the course of the season to 98.5-mph in recent games.

As it relates to his overall offensive skill, Paul Goldschmidt ranks in the 90th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Paul Goldschmidt is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in this game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 4th-best of the day for bats. Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics across the board, and Paul Goldschmidt will hold that advantage today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Seiya Suzuki in the 95th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive skill. Seiya Suzuki is penciled in 3rd in the lineup today. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Seiya Suzuki hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (42.1% — 100th percentile) and will have a big advantage facing baseball's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup.

When estimating his overall offensive ability, Dansby Swanson ranks in the 86th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Dansby Swanson hits many of his flyballs to center field (38.8% — 89th percentile) and is fortunate to face the league's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Dansby Swanson has made substantial gains with his Barrel% recently, upping his 9.9% seasonal rate to 25% in the last week's worth of games.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. In the last 14 days, Tomas Nido's 66.7% rate of hitting balls at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 55.2%.

Nolan Arenado is penciled in 5th on the lineup card in this game. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer strikeouts), and this game is predicted to have the 4th-hottest temperature of the day at 87°. The wind projects to be blowing out to LF at 8.1-mph in this game, the 5th-best of the day for bats. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter stats in all categories, and Nolan Arenado will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Nolan Arenado's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this season (15.8°) is significantly better than his 12.2° mark last year.