Houston @ Texas Picks & Props

Yainer Diaz is projected to bat 6th in the batting order in this matchup. The leading projection system (THE BAT) projects Globe Life Field as the worst venue in the league for right-handed batting average. Among all stadiums, Globe Life Field's CF dimensions are the 7th-deepest. Batting from the same side that Tyler Mahle throws from, Yainer Diaz will have a tough challenge in today's matchup. Typically, bats like Yainer Diaz who hit a lot of flyballs generally hit worse when facing pitchers who also induce a lot of flyballs such as Tyler Mahle.

The leading projection system (THE BAT) projects Globe Life Field as the worst venue in the league for right-handed batting average. Among all stadiums, Globe Life Field's CF dimensions are the 7th-deepest. Tyler Mahle will have the handedness advantage over Jeremy Pena today. Typically, bats like Jeremy Pena who hit a lot of groundballs tend to be less successful when facing pitchers who also induce a lot of groundballs such as Tyler Mahle. Among all the teams playing today, the 5th-strongest infield defense is that of the the Texas Rangers.

Evan Carter will have the handedness advantage against Ronel Blanco today. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter metrics across the board, and Evan Carter will hold that advantage in today's game. Evan Carter has been hot lately, compiling a a 27.3% Barrel% (an advanced stat to assess power) in the last week. Evan Carter has been zeroed in on the ideal launch angle for home runs in recent games, angling balls between 23° and 34° 27.3% of the time in the last 7 days. Evan Carter has been unlucky in regards to his batting average since the start of last season; his .190 mark is a good deal lower than his .210 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

Home field advantage typically boosts batter stats across the board, and Sam Haggerty will hold that advantage in today's matchup.

When assessing his overall offensive ability, Jake Burger ranks in the 91st percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Home field advantage generally boosts batter stats across the board, and Jake Burger will hold that advantage in today's game. Jake Burger has seen a significant increase in his exit velocity of late; just compare his 99.9-mph average over the last week to his seasonal 90.6-mph mark. Jake Burger has been unlucky this year, notching a .276 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .341 — a .065 deviation.

Isaac Paredes is projected to bat 3rd in the batting order in this matchup. Hitters such as Isaac Paredes with extreme flyball tendencies are usually more effective when facing pitchers like Tyler Mahle who skew towards the groundball end of the spectrum. Isaac Paredes's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls of late (26.7° in the past two weeks' worth of games) is significantly better than his 18° seasonal mark. Isaac Paredes's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better from last year to this one, increasing from 39.7% to 50%. In notching a .351 Expected wOBA (or xwOBA, an advanced metric created by the leading projection system (THE BAT X) utilizing Statcast data) this year, Isaac Paredes finds himself in the 82nd percentile for hitting ability.

Jonah Heim will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats.

Wyatt Langford projects as the 20th-best batter in MLB, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Wyatt Langford is penciled in 2nd in the lineup today. Wyatt Langford will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats. Wyatt Langford has made sizeable strides with his Barrel% of late, bettering his 12.1% seasonal rate to 28.6% in the past 7 days. Wyatt Langford has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity in recent games; just compare his 97.3-mph average over the past week to his seasonal 91-mph mark.

When estimating his overall offensive skill, Joc Pederson ranks in the 92nd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Joc Pederson will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Ronel Blanco today. Joc Pederson will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which should bolster all of his stats. Despite posting a .219 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Joc Pederson has had bad variance on his side given the .124 gap between that mark and his estimated true talent wOBA of .343. Joc Pederson has shown strong plate discipline since the start of last season, ranking in the 83rd percentile with a 1.85 K/BB rate.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Altuve in the 89th percentile when assessing his batting average ability. Jose Altuve is penciled in 2nd in the batting order in today's game. Despite posting a .285 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Jose Altuve has experienced some negative variance given the .037 deviation between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .322.

Marcus Semien is penciled in 5th in the lineup in this matchup. Marcus Semien will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats. In the past week, Marcus Semien's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 8.9% up to 14.3%. Marcus Semien's average launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls this season (16.5°) is a significant increase over his 13.5° mark last season. In the past week, Marcus Semien's 35.7% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 19.1%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Josh Jung in the 91st percentile when assessing his batting average ability. Josh Jung has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this year (73% of the time), but he is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup in today's game. Josh Jung will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats. In the last week, Josh Jung's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 95.9-mph over the course of the season to 101.2-mph in recent games. Josh Jung's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved from last season to this one, going from 16.8% to 21.5%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Josh Smith in the 76th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Josh Smith is projected to bat 1st on the lineup card in this matchup. Josh Smith will have the handedness advantage against Ronel Blanco in today's matchup. Home field advantage typically boosts hitter stats across the board, and Josh Smith will hold that advantage today. In the past 14 days, Josh Smith has significantly improved the launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls: 18.8° compared to his seasonal mark of 8°.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Zachary Dezenzo in the 94th percentile when it comes to his BABIP ability. Over the last 14 days, Zachary Dezenzo has improved his Barrel% substantially, increasing it from his seasonal rate of 15.6% to 26.3%. Zachary Dezenzo has been hot lately, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 88.1-mph to 91.7-mph in the last week's worth of games. Over the last 7 days, Zachary Dezenzo's 70% rate of hitting balls at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 60%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jake Meyers in the 76th percentile as it relates to his batting average ability. Jake Meyers has experienced some negative variance in regards to his batting average since the start of last season; his .235 mark is deflated compared to his .262 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data. Checking in at the 88th percentile, Jake Meyers has put up a .301 batting average this year.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Brendan Rodgers in the 83rd percentile when estimating his BABIP talent. Brendan Rodgers has seen a notable gain in his exit velocity on flyballs of late; just compare his 100.1-mph average in the last two weeks' worth of games to his seasonal figure of 90.4-mph. Brendan Rodgers has been unlucky this year, notching a .264 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .298 — a .034 discrepancy. With a .321 BABIP since the start of last season, Brendan Rodgers has performed in the 84th percentile.

Victor Caratini is penciled in 5th in the batting order today. Victor Caratini's average launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls in recent games (24.7° over the past two weeks) is quite a bit higher than his 15.1° seasonal angle. Victor Caratini's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved from last season to this one, rising from 15.4% to 19.1%. Sporting a .277 batting average since the start of last season, Victor Caratini finds himself in the 88th percentile.

As it relates to his overall offensive talent, Adolis Garcia ranks in the 83rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Adolis Garcia is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in this game. Home field advantage generally improves hitter stats in all categories, and Adolis Garcia will hold that advantage today. Adolis Garcia has made notable improvements with his Barrel% recently, upping his 13.9% seasonal rate to 21.1% in the past 7 days. There has been a significant improvement in Adolis Garcia's launch angle from last year's 14.8° to 21.1° this season.

Home field advantage generally boosts batter metrics across the board, and Kyle Higashioka will hold that advantage in today's game.

Christian Walker is projected to bat 4th in the batting order today. Christian Walker has been hot in recent games, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 90.2-mph to 92.4-mph in the last week. In the past 14 days, Christian Walker has significantly improved the launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls: 20.3° compared to his seasonal mark of 12.7°. Despite posting a .271 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Christian Walker has been unlucky given the .056 deviation between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .327.