St. Louis @ Pittsburgh Picks & Props

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Oneil Cruz in the 95th percentile when assessing his BABIP talent. Oneil Cruz is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in today's game. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Home field advantage typically improves batter stats in all categories, and Oneil Cruz will hold that advantage today.

Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Hitting from the opposite that Matthew Liberatore throws from, Michael A. Taylor will have the upper hand today. Michael A. Taylor will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which should improve all of his stats. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Michael A. Taylor's true offensive skill to be a .281, providing some evidence that he has had some very poor luck this year given the .047 discrepancy between that mark and his actual .234 wOBA.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Lars Nootbaar in the 92nd percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Lars Nootbaar has seen a significant increase in his exit velocity this year; just compare his 91.5-mph average to last year's 89.1-mph figure. In the last two weeks' worth of games, Lars Nootbaar's 24.2% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 15.6%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Josh Palacios in the 76th percentile as it relates to his batting average talent. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Home field advantage typically improves batter stats across the board, and Josh Palacios will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Josh Palacios has had bad variance on his side thus far when it comes to his batting average since the start of last season; his .238 rate is deflated compared to his .261 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

HRs are generally less common at parks with deep fences, and PNC Park has the 8th-deepest in MLB. As a switch-hitter who bats worse from the 0 side of the plate, Bryan Reynolds will be less advantaged while batting from his weak side against Matthew Liberatore in today's game. Out of all the teams playing today, the 5th-best infield defense is that of the the St. Louis Cardinals. Bryan Reynolds's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has declined lately, going from 16.7% on the season to 0% in the last 7 days. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Bryan Reynolds's true offensive talent to be a .343, suggesting that he has been very fortunate this year given the .017 disparity between that mark and his actual .360 wOBA.

Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Nolan Gorman has made substantial gains with his Barrel% in recent games, improving his 16.8% seasonal rate to 50% over the past week. Nolan Gorman's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this season (26.2°) is considerably better than his 21.5° mark last year. In the past week, Nolan Gorman's 50% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 24.9%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Brendan Donovan in the 93rd percentile when estimating his batting average talent. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. In the past week's worth of games, Brendan Donovan's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 5.4% up to 12.5%. Brendan Donovan has suffered from bad luck when it comes to his wOBA this year; his .324 rate is a fair amount lower than his .345 Expected wOBA, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

HRs are generally less common at parks with deep fences, and PNC Park has the 8th-deepest in MLB. Masyn Winn will be at a disadvantage playing as a visiting player today. Masyn Winn has been cold in recent games, with his seasonal exit velocity of 85.8-mph dropping to 82.6-mph in the last two weeks. Masyn Winn's exit velocity on flyballs has declined this season; his 89.7-mph mark last year has fallen to 86.4-mph. In the last two weeks' worth of games, Masyn Winn's 28.1% rate of hitting balls at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 44.2%.

Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Pedro Pages will hold the platoon advantage over Martin Perez in today's game.

HRs are generally less common at parks with deep fences, and PNC Park has the 8th-deepest in MLB. Martin Perez will hold the platoon advantage over Alec Burleson in today's matchup. Alec Burleson will be at a disadvantage playing on the road today. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Alec Burleson's true offensive skill to be a .318, indicating that he has had positive variance on his side this year given the .028 deviation between that mark and his actual .346 wOBA.

When assessing his overall offensive skill, Andrew McCutchen ranks in the 85th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Andrew McCutchen is projected to hit 1st in the batting order in this matchup. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Hitting from the opposite that Matthew Liberatore throws from, Andrew McCutchen will have an edge in today's matchup.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Paul Goldschmidt in the 89th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive skill. Paul Goldschmidt is projected to bat 5th in the lineup today. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Paul Goldschmidt will hold the platoon advantage against Martin Perez in today's game.

Connor Joe is penciled in 3rd in the lineup in this matchup. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Hitting from the opposite that Matthew Liberatore throws from, Connor Joe will have an advantage today. Home field advantage generally boosts batter stats across the board, and Connor Joe will hold that advantage in today's matchup.

Nolan Arenado is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in this game. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Nolan Arenado will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Martin Perez today.

Ke'Bryan Hayes's batting average ability is projected to be in the 80th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Ke'Bryan Hayes is projected to hit 5th in the lineup today. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Hitting from the opposite that Matthew Liberatore throws from, Ke'Bryan Hayes will have the upper hand in today's matchup.

Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Joey Bart will have the handedness advantage against Matthew Liberatore in today's game. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Joey Bart will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Joey Bart's speed has gotten better this year. His 26.21 ft/sec Statcast Sprint Speed last season sits at 26.99 ft/sec now.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Willson Contreras in the 96th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive talent. Willson Contreras is penciled in 3rd in the lineup in this game. Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. Willson Contreras will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Martin Perez today.

Built 724 feet above sea level, PNC Park has the 6th-highest altitude in the majors, which tends to lead to more offense. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is expected to have the 3rd-hottest temperature of the day at 84°. The switch-hitting Dylan Carlson will get to bat from his better side (0) today against Martin Perez. Dylan Carlson's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls this year (24.9°) is significantly higher than his 15° figure last season. Dylan Carlson has experienced some negative variance in regards to his batting average since the start of last season; his .216 figure is considerably lower than his .242 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.