Athletics @ Los Angeles Picks & Props

In terms of temperature and humidity, the weather forecast projects the 3rd-best pitching conditions of all games on the slate. Mitch Spence will hold the platoon advantage over Zach Neto today. Zach Neto's average exit velocity has decreased lately; his 92-mph seasonal EV has fallen off to 85.6-mph over the past two weeks. Zach Neto has shown weak plate discipline this year, placing in the 5th percentile with a 6.42 K/BB rate.

In terms of temperature and humidity, the weather forecast projects the 3rd-best pitching conditions of all games on the slate. Jose Soriano will hold the platoon advantage against Jacob Wilson today. Typically, bats like Jacob Wilson who hit a lot of flyballs are generally less successful when facing pitchers who also induce a lot of flyballs such as Jose Soriano. Jacob Wilson will be at a disadvantage playing on the visting team today. Jacob Wilson's exit velocity on flyballs has dropped off of late; his 86.8-mph seasonal EV has dropped to 84-mph in the past 7 days.

The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today.

Max Muncy has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this season (88% of the time), but he is projected to hit 5th in the batting order in this matchup. The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Max Muncy has made big gains with his Barrel% recently, bettering his 7% seasonal rate to 18.2% in the last 7 days. In the last week, Max Muncy's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 92.5-mph over the course of the season to 98.8-mph of late. Max Muncy's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved in recent games, increasing from 17.5% on the season to 36.4% in the past week's worth of games.

Brent Rooker projects as the 20th-best hitter in the majors, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Brent Rooker is projected to bat 2nd on the lineup card in today's game. Bats such as Brent Rooker with extreme flyball tendencies are usually more effective when facing pitchers like Jose Soriano who skew towards the groundball end of the spectrum. The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Brent Rooker's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased from last year to this one, rising from 42.1% to 48%.

When assessing his overall offensive skill, Taylor Ward ranks in the 94th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Taylor Ward is penciled in 4th in the batting order in this matchup. Extreme flyball hitters like Taylor Ward usually hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Mitch Spence. Taylor Ward will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to bolster all of his stats. Taylor Ward has seen a big improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 95.6-mph average to last season's 93.1-mph figure.

JJ Bleday will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Jose Soriano today. Hitters such as JJ Bleday with extreme flyball tendencies are usually more effective when facing pitchers like Jose Soriano who skew towards the groundball end of the spectrum. The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Compared to his seasonal average of 22.7°, JJ Bleday has significantly improved his launch angle in recent games, posting a 54.7° mark over the past week. By putting up a 1.79 K/BB rate this year, JJ Bleday has shown favorable plate discipline, ranking in the 75th percentile.

The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Willie MacIver has been zeroed in on the ideal launch angle for home runs of late, striking balls between 23° and 34° 25% of the time in the past week's worth of games.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Lawrence Butler in the 85th percentile when estimating his overall offensive talent. Lawrence Butler is projected to hit 1st in the batting order in this matchup. Hitting from the opposite that Jose Soriano throws from, Lawrence Butler will have an edge today. The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Lawrence Butler has made substantial strides with his Barrel% of late, bettering his 10.6% seasonal rate to 16.7% in the past two weeks' worth of games.

Over the past week, Chris Taylor's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 7.1% up to 27.3%. Chris Taylor has been hot recently, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 84.4-mph to 95.7-mph in the past week. Over the past two weeks, Chris Taylor's 46.7% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 19%. When it comes to his wOBA and overall offense, Chris Taylor has had bad variance on his side since the start of last season. His .267 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .287.

The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. In the last 14 days, Luis Urias's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 91.1-mph over the course of the season to 93.9-mph lately. Luis Urias has displayed impressive plate discipline this year, grading out in the 92nd percentile with a 1.26 K/BB rate.

As it relates to his BABIP talent, Denzel Clarke is projected as the 7th-best hitter in the game by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Over the last 14 days, Denzel Clarke has averaged an impressive 100.7-mph exit velocity on his flyballs, an advanced proxy for home run potential. Ranking in the 97th percentile for Sprint Speed at 29.52 ft/sec this year, Denzel Clarke is very toolsy.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Luis Rengifo in the 78th percentile when assessing his batting average talent. Home field advantage generally improves batter stats in all categories, and Luis Rengifo will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Luis Rengifo has had bad variance on his side thus far when it comes to his wOBA this year; his .222 mark is deflated compared to his .297 Expected wOBA, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

When it comes to his overall offensive skill, Tyler Soderstrom ranks in the 86th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Tyler Soderstrom is projected to hit 3rd in the batting order today. Hitting from the opposite that Jose Soriano throws from, Tyler Soderstrom will have an edge today. The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today. Tyler Soderstrom has put up a .347 Expected wOBA (xwOBA) this year, ranking in the 83rd percentile for offensive skills according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

When it comes to his overall offensive ability, Logan O'Hoppe ranks in the 85th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Logan O'Hoppe will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats. The Barrel% of Logan O'Hoppe has significantly improved, with an increase from 12% last year to 19.6% this season. This season, Logan O'Hoppe has experienced a significant increase in his exit velocity on flyballs, now sitting at an average of 98.3 mph compared to last year's 94.6 mph mark. Ranking in the 77th percentile, Logan O'Hoppe sports a .314 BABIP since the start of last season.

Mike Trout projects as the 11th-best batter in the game, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Mike Trout is projected to hit 3rd in the batting order in this game. Extreme flyball batters like Mike Trout are generally more successful against extreme groundball pitchers like Mitch Spence. Mike Trout will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should boost all of his stats. Mike Trout has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 92-mph to 96.4-mph in the past 14 days.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jorge Soler in the 91st percentile when it comes to his overall offensive talent. Jorge Soler is penciled in 5th on the lineup card in today's game. Jorge Soler will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to improve all of his stats. Despite posting a .295 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Jorge Soler has had some very poor luck given the .043 disparity between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .338.

Nolan Schanuel's batting average ability is projected to be in the 90th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Nolan Schanuel is projected to bat 2nd on the lineup card today. Batting from the opposite that Mitch Spence throws from, Nolan Schanuel will have an advantage in today's game. Nolan Schanuel will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to boost all of his stats. Over the last week, Nolan Schanuel's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 6.6% up to 18.8%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jo Adell in the 75th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive talent. Jo Adell will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which should boost all of his stats. Jo Adell has made big strides with his Barrel% recently, upping his 13.1% seasonal rate to 19.2% over the last 14 days. Jo Adell has seen a notable increase in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 99-mph average to last season's 94.1-mph figure. In the past 14 days, Jo Adell's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 99-mph over the course of the season to 102.6-mph recently.

Nicholas Kurtz is projected to bat 4th in the lineup today, which would be an upgrade from his 100% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the batting order this year. Nicholas Kurtz will hold the platoon advantage against Jose Soriano today. The Los Angeles Angels outfield defense projects as the 5th-weakest among every team in action today.

Scott Kingery will hold the home field advantage today, which should boost all of his stats.