Chicago @ Houston Picks & Props

As it relates to his batting average skill, Nico Hoerner is projected as the 18th-best batter in baseball by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Nico Hoerner's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased from last year to this one, going from 44.5% to 49.5%. Nico Hoerner's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better recently, increasing from 49.5% on the season to 59.5% in the past two weeks' worth of games. Nico Hoerner has notched a .292 Expected Batting Average this year, placing in the 94th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data. Nico Hoerner has shown strong plate discipline this year, checking in at the 92nd percentile with a 1.36 K/BB rate.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jake Meyers in the 84th percentile when estimating his batting average talent. Jake Meyers has primarily hit in the back-half of the batting order this year (84% of the time), but he is projected to hit 2nd in the batting order in this game. Jake Meyers will hold the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to bolster all of his stats. Compared to last season, Jake Meyers 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 44.4% to 51.3% this season. Placing in the 99th percentile, Jake Meyers has notched a .374 BABIP this year.

Seiya Suzuki projects as the 18th-best batter in baseball, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Seiya Suzuki is projected to hit 3rd in the lineup in today's game. Hitters such as Seiya Suzuki with extreme groundball tendencies are usually more effective when facing pitchers like Lance McCullers Jr. who skew towards the flyball end of the spectrum. The Barrel% of Seiya Suzuki has significantly improved, with an increase from 11.5% last year to 19.2% this season. Seiya Suzuki has made significant strides with his Barrel% of late, upping his 19.2% seasonal rate to 25.8% in the last 14 days.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Dansby Swanson in the 87th percentile when assessing his overall offensive skill. Dansby Swanson is projected to bat 5th in the lineup today. There has been a significant improvement in Dansby Swanson's launch angle from last season's 10.2° to 14.4° this season. Despite posting a .305 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Dansby Swanson has experienced some negative variance given the .026 gap between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .331.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Pete Crow-Armstrong in the 81st percentile when it comes to his overall offensive skill. Pete Crow-Armstrong is penciled in 4th in the batting order today. Pete Crow-Armstrong will have the handedness advantage against Lance McCullers Jr. in today's game. Pete Crow-Armstrong has made significant strides with his Barrel%, improving his 8% rate last season to 13.8% this season. Pete Crow-Armstrong's launch angle this season (22.8°) is significantly higher than his 16.7° figure last year.

Based on Statcast data, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected wOBA (.300) may lead us to conclude that Matt Shaw has had bad variance on his side this year with his .277 actual wOBA.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ian Happ in the 91st percentile when assessing his overall offensive skill. Ian Happ is penciled in 1st in the lineup in today's game. The switch-hitting Ian Happ will get to bat from his good side (0) today against Lance McCullers Jr.. Ian Happ has a 77th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (33.8%) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the league's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Ian Happ has made substantial improvements with his Barrel% in recent games, upping his 9.5% seasonal rate to 23.5% over the last week.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Altuve in the 88th percentile when estimating his batting average skill. Jose Altuve is penciled in 3rd in the lineup in today's game. Jose Altuve pulls many of his flyballs (40.9% — 99th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards MLB's 2nd-shallowest LF fences today. Home field advantage typically bolsters batter metrics in all categories, and Jose Altuve will hold that advantage today.

Christian Walker pulls many of his flyballs (34.2% — 82nd percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards baseball's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Christian Walker will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to bolster all of his stats. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Christian Walker's true offensive talent to be a .328, providing some evidence that he has suffered from bad luck this year given the .046 disparity between that mark and his actual .282 wOBA.

Kyle Tucker projects as the 7th-best batter in the league, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Kyle Tucker is projected to bat 2nd on the lineup card in this game. Kyle Tucker will have the handedness advantage against Lance McCullers Jr. today. Extreme flyball batters like Kyle Tucker tend to be more successful against extreme groundball pitchers like Lance McCullers Jr.. In the past two weeks, Kyle Tucker's 32.3% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 20.6%.

Home field advantage typically boosts hitter stats across the board, and Victor Caratini will hold that advantage today. Victor Caratini has made sizeable gains with his Barrel% of late, bettering his 8.1% seasonal rate to 15.2% over the past two weeks. Compared to his seasonal average of 15.6°, Victor Caratini has significantly improved his launch angle recently, posting a 33.8° angle over the past 7 days.

Yainer Diaz's batting average ability is projected to be in the 96th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Yainer Diaz is penciled in 5th in the lineup in this matchup. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter metrics in all categories, and Yainer Diaz will hold that advantage today. Despite posting a .291 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Yainer Diaz has had some very poor luck given the .035 disparity between that mark and his estimated true talent wOBA of .326.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Mauricio Dubon in the 82nd percentile when assessing his batting average ability. Mauricio Dubon will possess the home field advantage today, which should bolster all of his stats. In the past two weeks, Mauricio Dubon's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 88.1-mph over the course of the season to 97.3-mph recently. Over the last week, Mauricio Dubon's 42.9% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 19.7%. Based on Statcast metrics, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average (.281) implies that Mauricio Dubon has been unlucky this year with his .242 actual batting average.

Cooper Hummel will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which figures to boost all of his stats. Cooper Hummel has seen a big increase in his exit velocity on flyballs lately; just compare his 103.5-mph average in the last week's worth of games to his seasonal mark of 98.4-mph. Over the past two weeks, Cooper Hummel's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 25% up to 25%. In the past two weeks' worth of games, Cooper Hummel's swing has been well optimized for home runs, notching a 33.3% of balls hit with a launch angle in the optimal range of 23° to 34°.

Minute Maid Park has the least fair ground among all major league stadiums — generally good for dingers. Taylor Trammell will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Colin Rea today. Taylor Trammell will hold the home field advantage today, which ought to improve all of his stats.

Isaac Paredes is projected to bat 1st in the lineup today. Isaac Paredes pulls many of his flyballs (46.9% — 100th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards baseball's 2nd-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Isaac Paredes will benefit from the home field advantage today, which ought to improve all of his stats. Isaac Paredes has seen a significant increase in his exit velocity this season; just compare his 87.3-mph average to last year's 85-mph figure. Isaac Paredes's launch angle lately (30.2° in the last two weeks' worth of games) is quite a bit higher than his 21.4° seasonal figure.

Reese McGuire will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Lance McCullers Jr. in today's matchup. Reese McGuire has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs this year; just compare his 96.2-mph average to last season's 89.1-mph mark. Reese McGuire's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved from last season to this one, rising from 15% to 29.4%. Since the start of last season, Reese McGuire's 10.5% Barrel%, a reliable standard for measuring power, places him in the 78th percentile among his peers.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Michael Busch in the 91st percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Minute Maid Park has the least fair ground among all major league stadiums — generally good for dingers. Hitting from the opposite that Lance McCullers Jr. throws from, Michael Busch will have the upper hand today. Michael Busch has seen a big gain in his exit velocity on flyballs of late; just compare his 97.5-mph average over the last week to his seasonal average of 93.5-mph. Michael Busch's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved from last season to this one, rising from 18.1% to 22.8%.