Philadelphia @ San Diego picks

Although the Philadelphia Phillies have been inconsistent this season, Zack Wheeler remains one of the best pitchers in baseball. The veteran hurler is coming off a 12-strikeout, one-hit complete game against the Reds, and he dominated the San Diego Padres in his previous start with eight shutout innings. With the pitching advantage heavily in Philly's favor, take the NL East leaders to grab the road win at Petco Park.

Zack Wheeler has limited Padres hitters to a career OPS of just .504, while Yu Darvish has been just as sharp against the Phillies, posting a 29:4 K/BB ratio and holding them to a .234 batting average over 111 at-bats. Expect a low-scoring affair at Petco Park, which has always been a pitcher’s best friend.

The Philadelphia Phillies star has gone deep in three straight games. He’s left the ballpark five times in July and we’re not even at the mid-way mark of the month. Schwarber is now up to 30 HRs. San Diego Padres pitcher, Yu Darvish, is still getting his feet under him. This is only his second start since returning from the IL. A fourth game in a row with a homer for Schwarber? Don’t count it out. The track record of success against Darvish is evident.

Philadelphia Phillies ace, Zack Wheeler, has recorded Over 6.5 strikeouts in six straight starts. The right-hander also ranks third in the MLB with 148 punchouts this season and first in K/9 (11.5). Jackson Merrill(9), Manny Machado (7), and Fernando Tatis Jr. (7) have all averaged at least one strikeout per game over the past week so Wheeler should have plenty of options to prey on tonight.

Per the leading projection system (THE BAT X), the team with the least strikeout-heavy lineup in today's games is the San Diego Padres with a 18.9% underlying K%.. It is scheduled that we will see a Huge Hitters Umpire (Shane Livensparger) behind the plate today.. Zack Wheeler will be at a disadvantage playing on the visting team in today's game.. Contrary to popular belief, fastballs are typically a pitcher's least effective pitch. Zack Wheeler has utilized his fastball a lot this year, though: 59.1% of the time, ranking in the 100th percentile.. Considering the 0.25 difference between Zack Wheeler's 11.48 K/9 and his 11.23 estimated true talent K/9 (via the leading projection system, THE BAT), it's safe to say he's been one of the luckiest pitchers in MLB this year in terms of strikeouts and ought to see negative regression going forward.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Bryson Stott in the 85th percentile as it relates to his batting average ability.. The #5 park in MLB for boosting home runs to left-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield fences in MLB.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.. Bryson Stott will have the handedness advantage over Yu Darvish in today's matchup.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Manny Machado in the 96th percentile when it comes to his batting average skill.. Manny Machado is projected to hit 3rd in the batting order today.. The #5 venue in MLB for boosting home runs to right-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.. Manny Machado hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (40% — 97th percentile) and is fortunate to face the league's 2nd-shallowest CF fences today.

Bryce Harper projects as the 14th-best batter in MLB, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Bryce Harper is penciled in 3rd on the lineup card in this matchup.. The #5 park in MLB for boosting home runs to left-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield fences in MLB.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Nick Castellanos in the 90th percentile when it comes to his batting average skill.. Nick Castellanos is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card today.. The #5 venue in MLB for boosting home runs to right-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield fences in MLB.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Fernando Tatis Jr. ranks as the 7th-best batter in baseball.. Fernando Tatis Jr. is penciled in 1st in the lineup in today's game.. The #5 venue in MLB for boosting home runs to right-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.. Fernando Tatis Jr. hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (40.1% — 98th percentile) and will have a big advantage facing the league's 2nd-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Alec Bohm in the 97th percentile when it comes to his batting average skill.. Alec Bohm is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in today's game.. The #5 venue in MLB for boosting home runs to right-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.. Placing in the 86th percentile, Alec Bohm has notched a .281 batting average this year.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Trea Turner as the 12th-best batter in the majors when it comes to his batting average ability.. Trea Turner is projected to hit 1st in the lineup in this matchup.. The #5 venue in MLB for boosting home runs to right-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield fences in MLB.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.

Gavin Sheets is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in this game.. The #5 park in MLB for boosting home runs to left-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.. Batting from the opposite that Zack Wheeler throws from, Gavin Sheets will have the upper hand in today's game.. The Philadelphia Phillies outfield defense profiles as the weakest among all the teams today.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) ranks Kyle Schwarber as baseball's 4th-best home run batter.. Kyle Schwarber is penciled in 2nd on the lineup card in this matchup.. The #5 park in MLB for boosting home runs to left-handed hitters, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park.. Petco Park has the 4th-shortest fence height (on average) in the league.. Hitting from the opposite that Yu Darvish throws from, Kyle Schwarber will have an advantage in today's matchup.