St. Louis @ Texas picks

Even in an 11-1 thumping, the hitting beat goes on for St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Brendan Donovan. He picked up a hit in Friday’s loss, giving him hits in five straight games as he sits seventh in the majors with a .333 average. He’s picked up at least two total bases in three of his last four.

The Cardinals are second in the majors in BA (.262) while ranking eighth in runs per game (4.74). The Rangers are just 26th in slugging (.360) but their xSLG of .421 suggests we'll see positive regression. The Cards are starting Sonny Gray who has pitched to a 4.06 ERA through 11 starts. His ERA sits at a whopping 7.36 in the first inning. Texas responds with Patrick Corbin who has been one of the worst full-time starters in the majors over the last few years and has an xERA of 4.45 this season.  

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Alec Burleson in the 88th percentile when assessing his batting average talent.. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Ranking in the 78th percentile of THE BAT X's Spray Score since the start of last season, Alec Burleson demonstrated exceptional skill in hitting the ball to all fields - a key skill for achieving a high batting average.. Posting a .287 batting average this year, Alec Burleson is ranked in the 86th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jordan Walker in the 82nd percentile when assessing his BABIP talent.. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Jordan Walker will hold the platoon advantage over Patrick Corbin today.. Jordan Walker has made sizeable gains with his Barrel% recently, improving his 5.6% seasonal rate to 16.7% in the last 14 days.. Jordan Walker's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased in recent games, rising from 16.9% on the season to 33.3% in the past two weeks.

When it comes to his overall offensive skill, Wyatt Langford ranks in the 97th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).. Wyatt Langford is penciled in 3rd in the batting order today.. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Wyatt Langford will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats.. Wyatt Langford has made notable improvements with his Barrel% of late, improving his 13.7% seasonal rate to 37.5% in the last two weeks' worth of games.

Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Batting from the opposite that Patrick Corbin throws from, Pedro Pages will have an advantage in today's game.

When estimating his home run talent, Adolis Garcia ranks in the 95th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Adolis Garcia will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to bolster all of his stats.. Adolis Garcia's launch angle this season (21.6°) is a significant increase over his 14.8° figure last year.. Adolis Garcia's launch angle of late (30.3° in the past two weeks) is considerably higher than his 21.6° seasonal mark.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Corey Seager ranks as the 8th-best hitter in Major League Baseball.. Corey Seager is penciled in 2nd in the lineup in this matchup.. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Hitting from the opposite that Sonny Gray throws from, Corey Seager will have an edge in today's matchup.. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter stats in all categories, and Corey Seager will hold that advantage in today's game.

Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Batting from the opposite that Patrick Corbin throws from, Nolan Arenado will have an edge in today's game.. Batters such as Nolan Arenado with extreme groundball tendencies are usually more effective when facing pitchers like Patrick Corbin who skew towards the flyball end of the spectrum.. Nolan Arenado's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better in recent games, increasing from 15.1% on the season to 28.6% in the last 14 days.. As it relates to plate discipline, Nolan Arenado's talent is quite impressive, sporting a 1.4 K/BB rate this year while ranking in in the 88th percentile.

When estimating his overall offensive talent, Lars Nootbaar ranks in the 94th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).. Lars Nootbaar is penciled in 1st on the lineup card in today's game.. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Lars Nootbaar's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls recently (21.7° in the last two weeks) is a significant increase over his 10.5° seasonal figure.. Lars Nootbaar's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved from last season to this one, increasing from 43.2% to 49.3%.

It may be wise to expect improved performance for the Texas Rangers offense in the future, given that the leading projection system (THE BAT X) views them as the unluckiest offense in Major League Baseball this year.. Adrian Johnson profiles as a Huge Hitters Umpire and is scheduled to be behind the plate today.. Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Sonny Gray will be at a disadvantage playing away from home in today's matchup.. Sonny Gray's fastball velocity has fallen 1.1 mph this season (91.2 mph) below where it was last season (92.3 mph).

Globe Life Field has the 7th-shortest fence height (on average) among all parks.. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter stats in all categories, and Kyle Higashioka will hold that advantage today.. Grading out in the 94th percentile for power, Kyle Higashioka has paced 29.6 homers per 600 plate appearances since the start of last season.