Atlanta @ Washington picks

Smith-Shawver has pitched to a 2.33 ERA with an OBA of .218 through seven starts. While the rookie gives up too much hard contact, he does an excellent job of making batters miss and has racked up 5+ strikeouts in each of his last six starts. He's in the top 35th percentile in strikeout rate and chase rate, while sitting in the top 25th percentile in whiff rate. His last start came against the Nats on May 15, when he fanned six and allowed just a pair of hits across six innings.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects James Wood as the best batter in the game when estimating his BABIP talent.. James Wood is penciled in 2nd in the lineup in this matchup.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Hitting from the opposite that AJ Smith-Shawver throws from, James Wood will have the upper hand in today's matchup.. James Wood has a 97th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (39.8%) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards the game's 10th-shallowest LF fences today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) ranks Matt Olson as the game's 14th-best home run hitter.. Matt Olson is projected to bat 3rd in the batting order in today's game.. In MLB, Nationals Park's RF dimensions are the 8th-shallowest.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Matt Olson will hold the platoon advantage over Trevor Williams in today's matchup... and the cherry on top, Williams has a large platoon split.

This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Josh Bell has an 84th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34.8%) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them out towards the game's 10th-shallowest LF fences today.. Extreme groundball batters like Josh Bell usually hit better against extreme flyball pitchers like AJ Smith-Shawver.. Home field advantage generally boosts batter metrics across the board, and Josh Bell will hold that advantage in today's matchup.. This season, Josh Bell has experienced a significant improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs, now sitting at an average of 96.5 mph compared to last year's 92.8 mph mark.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Nathaniel Lowe in the 80th percentile when assessing his BABIP talent.. Nathaniel Lowe is projected to bat 3rd on the lineup card in today's game.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Hitting from the opposite that AJ Smith-Shawver throws from, Nathaniel Lowe will have an advantage in today's game.. Nathaniel Lowe has a 98th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (40.7%) and will have a big advantage hitting them out towards the league's 10th-shallowest LF fences in today's game.

This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Ozzie Albies pulls many of his flyballs (39.1% — 97th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards the game's 10th-shallowest RF fences in today's matchup.. The Washington Nationals outfield defense profiles as the 13th-strongest among every team playing today.. There has been a significant improvement in Ozzie Albies's launch angle from last season's 18.2° to 21.2° this year.. Ozzie Albies has been unlucky this year, compiling a .274 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .321 — a .047 difference.

Keibert Ruiz is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in today's game.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. As a switch-hitter who performs better from the 0 side of the plate, Keibert Ruiz will hold the platoon advantage while batting from from his good side against AJ Smith-Shawver in this game.. Keibert Ruiz pulls a lot of his flyballs (39.1% — 97th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards the league's 10th-shallowest RF fences today.. Keibert Ruiz will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should boost all of his stats.

Austin Riley projects as the 16th-best home run batter in baseball, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Austin Riley is projected to hit 2nd in the batting order in today's game.. Among all major league parks, Nationals Park's LF fences are the 10th-shallowest.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. The Washington Nationals outfield defense profiles as the 13th-strongest among every team playing today.

When assessing his home run ability, Marcell Ozuna ranks in the 96th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Marcell Ozuna is projected to hit 4th in the batting order in this game.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Marcell Ozuna pulls a lot of his flyballs (34.5% — 86th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards MLB's 10th-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup.. The Washington Nationals outfield defense profiles as the 13th-strongest among every team playing today.

Alex Verdugo's batting average ability is projected to be in the 86th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Alex Verdugo is projected to hit 1st on the lineup card today.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Alex Verdugo will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Trevor Williams today... and even better, Williams has a large platoon split.. Alex Verdugo has a 95th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (38%) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards baseball's 10th-shallowest LF fences today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects James Wood as the best batter in the game when estimating his BABIP talent.. James Wood is penciled in 2nd in the lineup in this matchup.. This game is forecasted to have the 11th-best conditions for pitching among all the games scheduled today.. Hitting from the opposite that AJ Smith-Shawver throws from, James Wood will have the upper hand in today's matchup.. James Wood has a 97th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (39.8%) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards the game's 10th-shallowest LF fences today.