Los Angeles @ St. Louis Picks & Props

Batting from the same side that Sonny Gray throws from, Mookie Betts meets a tough challenge today. The St. Louis Cardinals infield defense profiles as the 4th-strongest among every team on the slate today. Mookie Betts will be at a disadvantage playing away from home today. This season, Mookie Betts's Barrel% has decreased significantly, dropping from 12.5% last year to just 6.1% this year. Mookie Betts's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this season (13.5°) is quite a bit worse than his 18.6° angle last year.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Victor Scott hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (38.4% — 85th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards the league's 7th-shallowest CF fences today. Victor Scott will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should boost all of his stats. Victor Scott has made sizeable strides with his Barrel% recently, bettering his 4.8% seasonal rate to 40% over the past 7 days. Victor Scott has seen a sizeable gain in his exit velocity recently; just compare his 93.3-mph average over the past 14 days to his seasonal 89.6-mph figure.

In Major League Baseball, Busch Stadium has the 7th-lowest average fence height. Shohei Ohtani has a 76th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (33.9%) and will have to hit them out towards the league's 6th-deepest LF fences in today's game. Playing on the road typically lowers hitter stats across the board due to the lack of home field advantage, which figures to be the case for Shohei Ohtani today. Shohei Ohtani has negatively regressed with his Barrel% lately; his 20% seasonal rate has dropped off to 14.6% over the past 14 days. Shohei Ohtani's exit velocity on flyballs has decreased lately; his 99.4-mph seasonal average has dropped to 95.5-mph in the last two weeks.

Masyn Winn is projected to bat 1st in the lineup today. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Masyn Winn will have the handedness advantage against Clayton Kershaw in today's matchup. Masyn Winn will possess the home field advantage today, which should bolster all of his stats. Masyn Winn has been hot lately, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 86.4-mph to 91-mph in the last two weeks.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Nick Ahmed's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this year (16.3°) is quite a bit higher than his 11.7° angle last season.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Teoscar Hernandez as the 9th-best hitter in baseball when estimating his BABIP skill. Teoscar Hernandez is projected to hit 4th in the batting order in today's game. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Compared to his seasonal average of 9.7°, Teoscar Hernandez has significantly improved his launch angle recently, posting a 16.4° figure in the last week's worth of games. Utilizing Statcast metrics, Teoscar Hernandez grades out in the 85th percentile for offensive skills according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected wOBA (xwOBA) this year at .348.

Gavin Lux's BABIP skill is projected in the 79th percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Gavin Lux is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup in today's game, which would be an upgrade from his 78% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the lineup this season. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Hitting from the opposite that Sonny Gray throws from, Gavin Lux will have the upper hand in today's matchup. Gavin Lux hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39.5% — 96th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards the game's 7th-shallowest CF fences today.

When it comes to his overall offensive skill, Paul Goldschmidt ranks in the 91st percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Paul Goldschmidt is penciled in 5th in the batting order today. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Hitting from the opposite that Clayton Kershaw throws from, Paul Goldschmidt will have an edge in today's game. Home field advantage typically boosts batter metrics in all categories, and Paul Goldschmidt will hold that advantage in today's matchup.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jordan Walker in the 87th percentile when it comes to his BABIP talent. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Hitting from the opposite that Clayton Kershaw throws from, Jordan Walker will have the upper hand today. Jordan Walker hits many of his flyballs to center field (39.2% — 93rd percentile) and is fortunate to face baseball's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Home field advantage generally improves batter metrics in all categories, and Jordan Walker will hold that advantage in today's game.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Austin Barnes hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (38.4% — 85th percentile) and is fortunate to face the league's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Tommy Pham in the 81st percentile when estimating his overall offensive skill. Tommy Pham is penciled in 3rd in the batting order in today's game. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Hitting from the opposite that Clayton Kershaw throws from, Tommy Pham will have the upper hand today. Tommy Pham hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39.5% — 96th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards the league's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup.

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 projected to hit 2nd in the batting order in this game. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Willson Contreras will have the handedness advantage over Clayton Kershaw in today's matchup. Willson Contreras will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should improve all of his stats.

Nolan Arenado is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in today's game. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Nolan Arenado will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Clayton Kershaw in today's game. Nolan Arenado will hold the home field advantage today, which figures to boost all of his stats. As it relates to plate discipline, Nolan Arenado's skill is quite impressive, posting a 2 K/BB rate this year while checking in at in the 78th percentile.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Kike Hernandez hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (38.2% — 80th percentile) and is fortunate to face the game's 7th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Kike Hernandez has seen a substantial gain in his exit velocity this year; just compare his 90-mph average to last year's 87.8-mph EV. Kike Hernandez's launch angle in recent games (21.3° over the last two weeks) is quite a bit higher than his 16.7° seasonal mark. Despite posting a .267 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Kike Hernandez has suffered from bad luck given the .028 deviation between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .295.

Miguel Rojas is projected to bat 5th on the lineup card today, which would be an upgrade from his 93% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the lineup this season. The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Over the last 14 days, Miguel Rojas's 50% rate of hitting balls at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 41.5%. When it comes to plate discipline, Miguel Rojas's ability is quite strong, posting a 1.84 K/BB rate this year while grading out in in the 83rd percentile. Miguel Rojas has recorded a .273 batting average this year, checking in at the 82nd percentile.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Batting from the opposite that Clayton Kershaw throws from, Pedro Pages will have an advantage in today's game. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Pedro Pages will hold that advantage in today's game.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 4th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). In the last 7 days, Andy Pages's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 10.8% up to 33.3%. Andy Pages has been hot in recent games, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 88.4-mph to 95.4-mph over the past week. Andy Pages's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased of late, going from 46.4% on the season to 66.7% in the last week. Andy Pages has suffered from bad luck when it comes to his wOBA this year; his .304 figure is considerably lower than his .338 Expected wOBA, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Hitting from the opposite that Sonny Gray throws from, Kevin Kiermaier will have an advantage in today's game. In the past 7 days, Kevin Kiermaier's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 91-mph over the course of the season to 101.9-mph lately. Kevin Kiermaier's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this season (7.5°) is considerably better than his 4.4° angle last season. Kevin Kiermaier's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved of late, increasing from 41.3% on the season to 68.8% in the past two weeks.

Brendan Donovan's batting average talent is projected to be in the 93rd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). The weather report calls for temperatures in this game to reach the 5th-highest level on the slate at 82°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). Home field advantage typically boosts hitter metrics across the board, and Brendan Donovan will hold that advantage today. Brendan Donovan's launch angle in recent games (22.8° over the past two weeks) is significantly better than his 12.6° seasonal mark. Using Statcast metrics, Brendan Donovan grades out in the 76th percentile for offensive ability according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected wOBA (xwOBA) this year at .336.

Alec Burleson has gone over 0.5 in 6 of his last 10 games.