Globe Life Field
Hitting from the opposite that Jack Leiter throws from, Kyle Isbel will have the upper hand in today's matchup. Kyle Isbel has been hot recently, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 86.7-mph to 91.7-mph in the past two weeks.
The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Evan Carter in the 86th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Evan Carter is projected to bat 1st in the lineup in this game, which would be an upgrade from his 72% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the lineup this year. Batting from the opposite that Seth Lugo throws from, Evan Carter will have an advantage in today's matchup. Home field advantage typically boosts batter stats in all categories, and Evan Carter will hold that advantage in today's game. Evan Carter has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 87.7-mph to 93.1-mph in the past 14 days.
Corey Seager projects as the 12th-best batter in Major League Baseball, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Corey Seager is penciled in 3rd in the lineup in this game. Batting from the opposite that Seth Lugo throws from, Corey Seager will have an edge today. Home field advantage generally improves batter stats across the board, and Corey Seager will hold that advantage today. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Corey Seager's true offensive skill to be a .374, suggesting that he has been unlucky this year given the .060 difference between that mark and his actual .314 wOBA.
Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Jonah Heim will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Jonah Heim's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better lately, rising from 15.5% on the season to 22.2% in the last two weeks' worth of games.
According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Bobby Witt Jr. ranks as the 9th-best hitter in MLB. Bobby Witt Jr. is penciled in 2nd on the lineup card in today's game. Compared to last year, Bobby Witt Jr. has improved his ability to hit the ball at a launch angle ideal for base hits, increasing his percentage of balls hit between -4° and 26° from 43.7% to 49.4% this season. Despite posting a .338 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Bobby Witt Jr. has suffered from bad luck given the .039 difference between that mark and his estimated true talent wOBA of .377. Bobby Witt Jr. has compiled a .279 batting average this year, ranking in the 82nd percentile.
Josh Jung's BABIP talent is projected in the 91st percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Josh Jung will possess the home field advantage today, which figures to improve all of his stats. Josh Jung's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased from last year to this one, rising from 16.8% to 20.7%. Josh Jung's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved lately, rising from 49.2% on the season to 55.2% over the past two weeks.
Jac Caglianone will have the handedness advantage over Jack Leiter in today's game. Jac Caglianone has hit one of the hardest balls in baseball over the last 14 days — 113.9-mph — which is a good proxy for recent form and raw power. Jac Caglianone has been honed in on the ideal launch angle for base hits lately, lifting balls between -4° and 26° 57.8% of the time in the last 14 days.
When assessing his overall offensive skill, Josh Smith ranks in the 78th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Josh Smith is projected to hit 1st in the batting order in this matchup. Josh Smith will have the handedness advantage over Seth Lugo in today's matchup. Josh Smith will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should bolster all of his stats. This season, Josh Smith has experienced a significant increase in his exit velocity on flyballs, now sitting at an average of 92 mph compared to last year's 90 mph mark.
The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Maikel Garcia in the 93rd percentile as it relates to his batting average skill. Maikel Garcia is projected to bat 3rd in the batting order in this matchup. Sporting a .369 wOBA (a leading indicator of offensive ability) this year, Maikel Garcia grades out in the 90th percentile. Maikel Garcia has recorded a .307 batting average this year, checking in at the 95th percentile.
Nick Loftin has seen a notable gain in his exit velocity this season; just compare his 90.4-mph average to last season's 83.6-mph EV. Nick Loftin'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, rising from 34.9% to 44.7%. Based on Statcast metrics, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average (.233) implies that Nick Loftin has had bad variance on his side since the start of last season with his .202 actual batting average. Nick Loftin has exhibited strong plate discipline since the start of last season, ranking in the 93rd percentile with a 1.48 K/BB rate.
When assessing his overall offensive talent, Jake Burger ranks in the 93rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Home field advantage generally improves batter stats across the board, and Jake Burger will hold that advantage today. Jake Burger has been unlucky this year, notching a .290 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .342 — a .052 disparity.
Ezequiel Duran will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats. Ezequiel Duran's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better from last year to this one, increasing from 11.2% to 14.3%.
Vinnie Pasquantino is projected to bat 4th in the lineup in this matchup. Hitting from the opposite that Jack Leiter throws from, Vinnie Pasquantino will have the upper hand today. By putting up a .276 batting average this year, Vinnie Pasquantino finds himself in the 78th percentile.
The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Wyatt Langford in the 96th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Wyatt Langford is projected to hit 2nd in the batting order in this matchup. Wyatt Langford will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to boost all of his stats. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Wyatt Langford's true offensive ability to be a .359, indicating that he has been unlucky this year given the .035 gap between that mark and his actual .324 wOBA.
The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Adolis Garcia in the 83rd percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Adolis Garcia is projected to hit 5th in the batting order in this game. Adolis Garcia will possess the home field advantage today, which should bolster all of his stats. Adolis Garcia has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 92.9-mph to 95.6-mph over the past two weeks. Adolis Garcia's launch angle this season (20.5°) is quite a bit higher than his 14.8° angle last season.
As it relates to his overall offensive talent, Jonathan India ranks in the 90th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Jonathan India is projected to hit 1st in the batting order today. Over the last week, Jonathan India's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 6.3% up to 21.1%. In the past two weeks' worth of games, Jonathan India's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 90-mph over the course of the season to 94.3-mph recently. In the last week's worth of games, Jonathan India's 26.3% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 18.6%.
Salvador Perez is penciled in 5th on the lineup card today. Salvador Perez's launch angle lately (25.7° in the last two weeks' worth of games) is significantly better than his 17.8° seasonal figure. Based on Statcast data, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected wOBA (.315) provides evidence that Salvador Perez has had bad variance on his side this year with his .276 actual wOBA.
Hitting from the opposite that Seth Lugo throws from, Alejandro Osuna will have an edge in today's game. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats in all categories, and Alejandro Osuna will hold that advantage today. Ranking in the 84th percentile for Sprint Speed at 28.58 ft/sec this year, Alejandro Osuna is very fast.
Drew Waters's BABIP talent is projected in the 89th percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). The switch-hitting Drew Waters will get to bat from his better side (0) today against Jack Leiter. Drew Waters's launch angle of late (55.5° over the last 7 days) is significantly higher than his 10.7° seasonal angle. Ranking in the 94th percentile, Drew Waters has notched a .356 BABIP since the start of last season.
When assessing his overall offensive skill, Marcus Semien ranks in the 84th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Marcus Semien is projected to bat 4th in the lineup today. Marcus Semien will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should bolster all of his stats. Marcus Semien's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved lately, rising from 18.9% on the season to 23.1% over the last 7 days. Based on Statcast data, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected wOBA (.326) suggests that Marcus Semien has been unlucky this year with his .286 actual wOBA.
Batting from the opposite that Jack Leiter throws from, John Rave will have the upper hand in today's game. John Rave is remarkably quick, grading out in the 99th percentile in Sprint Speed at 30 ft/sec this year.
