San Diego @ Houston Picks & Props

Minute Maid Park profiles as the #22 ballpark in the majors for RHB batting average, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Minute Maid Park's elevation is near sea-level, one of the lowest among all stadiums, which tends to lead to lower offensive output. Batting from the same side that Hayden Wesneski throws from, Fernando Tatis Jr. meets a tough challenge today. Fernando Tatis Jr. hits many of his flyballs to center field (38.9% — 87th percentile) and will be challenged by MLB's 9th-deepest CF fences in today's matchup. Playing on the road generally weakens hitter metrics across the board due to the lack of home field advantage, which figures to be the case for Fernando Tatis Jr. today.

Minute Maid Park profiles as the #22 stadium in Major League Baseball for left-handed batting average, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Minute Maid Park's elevation is near sea-level, one of the lowest among all stadiums, which tends to lead to lower offensive output. Luis Arraez will be at a disadvantage playing as a visiting player today. Luis Arraez has been cold of late, putting up a 0% Barrel% (an advanced stat to assess power) in the last 14 days.

Extreme flyball hitters like Victor Caratini usually hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Michael King. Home field advantage typically bolsters batter stats in all categories, and Victor Caratini will hold that advantage today. The standard deviation of Victor Caratini's launch angle since the start of last season (25.2°) is in the 94th percentile. A low mark like this tends to lead to a higher rate of hits on balls in play. Placing in the 78th percentile, Victor Caratini sits with a .327 wOBA (widely regarded as the top indicator of overall offense) since the start of last season. Sporting a .273 batting average since the start of last season, Victor Caratini is positioned in the 86th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Xander Bogaerts in the 94th percentile as it relates to his batting average skill. Xander Bogaerts is penciled in 4th in the lineup in today's game. Xander Bogaerts has seen a notable increase in his exit velocity this year; just compare his 91.3-mph average to last season's 88.1-mph figure. Compared to his seasonal average of 12.7°, Xander Bogaerts has significantly improved his launch angle of late, posting a 32° figure in the past 7 days. Xander Bogaerts has compiled a .266 batting average since the start of last season, checking in at the 79th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Brendan Rodgers in the 79th percentile when assessing his BABIP talent. Extreme groundball batters like Brendan Rodgers are generally more successful against extreme flyball pitchers like Michael King. Brendan Rodgers will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats. The standard deviation of Brendan Rodgers's launch angle since the start of last season (25.4°) is in the 92nd percentile. A low deviation like this tends to lead to a higher rate of base hits. Checking in at the 87th percentile of THE BAT X's Spray Score since the start of last season, Brendan Rodgers demonstrated exceptional skill in hitting the ball to all fields - a crucial ability for achieving a high batting average.

Yainer Diaz's batting average skill is projected to be in the 97th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Extreme groundball bats like Yainer Diaz generally hit better against extreme flyball pitchers like Michael King. Yainer Diaz will hold the home field advantage today, which figures to bolster all of his stats. Yainer Diaz has suffered from bad luck when it comes to his wOBA since the start of last season; his .316 rate is a good deal lower than his .336 Expected wOBA, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data. Checking in at the 93rd percentile, Yainer Diaz has put up a .290 batting average since the start of last season.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 94th percentile as it relates to his batting average talent. Jeremy Pena is projected to hit 4th in the batting order in this game. In MLB, Minute Maid Park's left field dimensions are the 2nd-shallowest. Extreme flyball batters like Jeremy Pena are generally more successful against extreme groundball pitchers like Michael King. Home field advantage typically improves batter metrics across the board, and Jeremy Pena will hold that advantage in today's game.

Jake Meyers will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to bolster all of his stats. In terms of his wOBA and overall offense, Jake Meyers has had bad variance on his side since the start of last season. His .285 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .323.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Altuve in the 91st percentile when estimating his batting average skill. Jose Altuve is projected to bat 1st in the batting order today. Jose Altuve pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (40.7% — 99th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Home field advantage typically boosts hitter stats in all categories, and Jose Altuve will hold that advantage in today's game. Compared to his seasonal average of 14.4°, Jose Altuve has significantly improved his launch angle lately, posting a 30.4° figure in the last week.

Isaac Paredes is penciled in 2nd in the batting order in this matchup. Isaac Paredes pulls a lot of his flyballs (46.6% — 100th 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 game. Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Isaac Paredes will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Isaac Paredes has seen a substantial improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 91.2-mph average to last year's 89-mph EV. Isaac Paredes's launch angle of late (28.8° in the last week's worth of games) is significantly higher than his 20.4° seasonal angle.

Christian Walker is projected to hit 5th in the lineup in this matchup. In MLB, Minute Maid Park's left field dimensions are the 2nd-shallowest. Christian Walker will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to bolster all of his stats. Christian Walker has been unlucky this year, notching a .231 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .329 — a .098 difference.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Yordan Alvarez ranks as the 3rd-best hitter in Major League Baseball. Yordan Alvarez is projected to hit 3rd on the lineup card in today's game. Yordan Alvarez will have the handedness advantage against Michael King in today's matchup. Yordan Alvarez will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to improve all of his stats. Yordan Alvarez has seen a notable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 96.1-mph average to last year's 93.9-mph mark.

As it relates to his overall offensive talent, Manny Machado ranks in the 93rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Manny Machado is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup today. Manny Machado has been hot in recent games, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 91.8-mph to 95.7-mph in the past week's worth of games. Using Statcast data, Manny Machado is in the 88th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average since the start of last season at .278. Placing in the 85th percentile, Manny Machado has put up a .346 wOBA (widely regarded as the top measure of overall offense) since the start of last season.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Oscar Gonzalez in the 83rd percentile when estimating his batting average skill. Oscar Gonzalez is projected to hit 5th in the batting order in this game.

In MLB, Minute Maid Park's left field dimensions are the 2nd-shallowest. In the past 7 days, Elias Diaz's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 92.6-mph over the course of the season to 96.1-mph of late. Elias Diaz's launch angle this year (20.1°) is quite a bit better than his 7.3° mark last year.

Tyler Wade will hold the platoon advantage over Hayden Wesneski in today's game. Tyler Wade has an 81st percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34.1%) and has the good fortune of hitting them out towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today. Extreme groundball hitters like Tyler Wade are generally more successful against extreme flyball pitchers like Hayden Wesneski. In terms of his wOBA and overall offense, Tyler Wade has had bad variance on his side since the start of last season. His .255 mark falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .287. When it comes to hitting balls between 23° and 34° (the launch angle range that tends to result the most in home runs), Tyler Wade and his 18.1% rank in the 78th percentile since the start of last season.

Jose Iglesias's batting average ability is projected to be in the 92nd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Extreme flyball batters like Jose Iglesias generally hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Hayden Wesneski. Ranking in the 93rd percentile, Jose Iglesias has posted a .363 wOBA (widely regarded as the top indicator of overall offense) since the start of last season. Jose Iglesias has posted a .339 batting average since the start of last season, checking in at the 100th percentile.

Gavin Sheets has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this season (50% of the time), but he is projected to hit 4th on the lineup card in this matchup. Gavin Sheets will hold the platoon advantage over Hayden Wesneski in today's matchup. Gavin Sheets has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity lately; just compare his 93.1-mph average in the last week to his seasonal 89.9-mph average. Compared to his seasonal average of 18.5°, Gavin Sheets has significantly improved his launch angle in recent games, posting a 33.3° angle in the last 7 days.

Martin Maldonado has gone over 0.5 in 7 of his last 10 games.