Houston @ Pittsburgh Picks & Props

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Oneil Cruz in the 96th percentile when estimating his overall offensive talent. Oneil Cruz is projected to hit 1st in the lineup in this game. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Oneil Cruz will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to improve all of his stats. Oneil Cruz has made big improvements with his Barrel%, bettering his 15.7% rate last year to 24.6% this year.

The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Henry Davis will have the handedness advantage over Framber Valdez in today's game. Henry Davis will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to improve all of his stats. Henry Davis has made significant gains with his Barrel% in recent games, improving his 8.3% seasonal rate to 18.8% in the past two weeks' worth of games. Over the last two weeks, Henry Davis's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 89.5-mph over the course of the season to 99.9-mph in recent games.

When it comes to his overall offensive skill, Andrew McCutchen ranks in the 87th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Andrew McCutchen is projected to bat 2nd in the lineup today. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Batting from the opposite that Framber Valdez throws from, Andrew McCutchen will have an edge in today's game. Andrew McCutchen will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to improve all of his stats.

Mitch Keller will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Jose Altuve in today's matchup. Jose Altuve pulls a lot of his flyballs (41.4% — 99th percentile) but may find it hard to clear baseball's 11th-deepest LF fences in today's game. The Pittsburgh Pirates infield defense projects as the 2nd-strongest among every team playing today. Playing on the road generally weakens hitter stats across the board due to the lack of home field advantage, which should be the case for Jose Altuve in today's matchup. In terms of his batting average, Jose Altuve has had some very good luck this year. His .263 mark has been quite a bit higher than the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected Batting Average (xBA) at .231.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Bryan Reynolds in the 94th percentile as it relates to his BABIP skill. Bryan Reynolds is projected to hit 3rd on the lineup card today. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Bryan Reynolds will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to bolster all of his stats. Bryan Reynolds has seen a sizeable increase in his exit velocity of late; just compare his 94.6-mph average in the last 14 days to his seasonal 91-mph figure.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ke'Bryan Hayes in the 75th percentile when estimating his batting average ability. Ke'Bryan Hayes is penciled in 5th in the lineup in today's game. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Ke'Bryan Hayes will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Framber Valdez in today's matchup. Ke'Bryan Hayes will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which should bolster all of his stats.

The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Jacob Melton will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Mitch Keller in today's matchup.

Hitting from the same side that Mitch Keller throws from, Yainer Diaz has a tough challenge in today's game. The Pittsburgh Pirates infield defense projects as the 2nd-strongest among every team playing today. Playing on the road generally weakens hitter stats in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which figures to be the case for Yainer Diaz in today's game. Sporting a 4.74 K/BB rate this year, Yainer Diaz has demonstrated bad plate discipline, checking in at the 12th percentile. Ranking in the 16th percentile, Yainer Diaz has notched a .250 BABIP this year.

Christian Walker is penciled in 4th on the lineup card today. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Compared to his seasonal average of 15.1°, Christian Walker has significantly improved his launch angle lately, posting a 40° angle in the last week's worth of games. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Christian Walker's true offensive talent to be a .329, providing some evidence that he has been unlucky this year given the .046 gap between that figure and his actual .283 wOBA.

Batting from the same side that Mitch Keller throws from, Jeremy Pena will not have the upper hand in today's matchup. The Pittsburgh Pirates infield defense projects as the 2nd-strongest among every team playing today. Jeremy Pena will be at a disadvantage playing as a visiting player in today's matchup. Jeremy Pena's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has decreased from last season to this one, going from 12.3% to 8.5%. In the last two weeks' worth of games, Jeremy Pena's 4.5% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 8.5%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Isiah Kiner-Falefa in the 89th percentile as it relates to his batting average talent. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Isiah Kiner-Falefa will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Framber Valdez in today's game. Isiah Kiner-Falefa will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to improve all of his stats. Isiah Kiner-Falefa has seen a substantial improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs lately; just compare his 102.1-mph average in the last 7 days to his seasonal EV of 88.7-mph.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Mauricio Dubon in the 84th percentile when it comes to his batting average skill. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Grading out in the 83rd percentile, Mauricio Dubon has put up a .272 batting average since the start of last season.

Isaac Paredes is projected to bat 2nd in the lineup in today's game. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Isaac Paredes is an extreme flyball batter and squares off against the weak outfield defense of Pittsburgh (#2-worst of all teams on the slate today). Isaac Paredes has been hot in recent games, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 86.8-mph to 89.2-mph over the last two weeks. Compared to his seasonal average of 20.3°, Isaac Paredes has significantly improved his launch angle in recent games, posting a 36.8° angle over the last week.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jake Meyers in the 79th percentile when it comes to his BABIP skill. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Jake Meyers's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better recently, rising from 14.4% on the season to 33.3% in the last week's worth of games. Jake Meyers's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased from last season to this one, increasing from 44.4% to 51.4%. Jake Meyers has compiled a .278 Expected Batting Average this year, placing in the 83rd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. With a .275 batting average since the start of last season, Victor Caratini has performed in the 85th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jared Triolo in the 75th percentile when estimating his BABIP talent. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Jared Triolo will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Framber Valdez in today's game. Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Jared Triolo will hold that advantage today. In terms of his batting average, Jared Triolo has been unlucky since the start of last season. His .204 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected Batting Average (xBA) at .232.

The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Tommy Pham will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Framber Valdez today. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats in all categories, and Tommy Pham will hold that advantage today. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Tommy Pham's true offensive talent to be a .304, providing some evidence that he has been unlucky this year given the .070 deviation between that mark and his actual .234 wOBA.

Alexander Canario is penciled in 5th in the lineup today. The weather forecast predicts the 5th-most suitable hitting weather of the day, as it relates to temperature and humidity. Alexander Canario will hold the platoon advantage over Framber Valdez in today's game. Alexander Canario will have the benefit of the home field advantage today, which figures to bolster all of his stats. When it comes to his wOBA and overall offense, Alexander Canario has suffered from bad luck this year. His .281 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .317.

Endy Rodriguez has gone over 0.5 in 5 of his last 10 games.