Texas @ Los Angeles Picks & Props

Hitting from the opposite that Yusei Kikuchi throws from, Ezequiel Duran will have the upper hand today. Ezequiel Duran has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 92.7-mph average to last season's 89.8-mph average.

As far as temperature and humidity go, the 4th-best pitching weather on the schedule is expected for this contest. Batting from the same side that Yusei Kikuchi throws from, Corey Seager encounters a tough challenge today. Playing on the road generally lessens hitter metrics across the board due to the lack of home field advantage, which ought to be the case for Corey Seager today.

Josh Smith has gone over 0.5 in 4 of his last 10 games.

As far as temperature and humidity go, the 4th-best pitching weather on the schedule is expected for this contest.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Taylor Ward ranks in the 93rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Taylor Ward is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in today's game. Hitting from the opposite that Patrick Corbin throws from, Taylor Ward will have an edge today. Taylor Ward will have the benefit of the home field advantage today, which should improve all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Adolis Garcia in the 82nd percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Adolis Garcia is projected to hit 4th in the lineup today. Batting from the opposite that Yusei Kikuchi throws from, Adolis Garcia will have an edge in today's game. There has been a significant improvement in Adolis Garcia's launch angle from last year's 14.8° to 18.2° this season. Despite posting a .291 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Adolis Garcia has suffered from bad luck given the .035 discrepancy between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .326.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Wyatt Langford in the 95th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Wyatt Langford will have the handedness advantage against Yusei Kikuchi in today's matchup. Wyatt Langford has been unlucky this year, compiling a .316 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .349 — a .033 disparity.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Logan O'Hoppe in the 82nd percentile when it comes to his overall offensive talent. Logan O'Hoppe will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Patrick Corbin today. Home field advantage typically improves hitter stats in all categories, and Logan O'Hoppe will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Logan O'Hoppe has seen a notable increase in his exit velocity on flyballs this year; just compare his 97.6-mph average to last year's 94.6-mph figure. Logan O'Hoppe's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this season (20.6°) is considerably better than his 16° angle last year.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Mike Trout ranks as the 12th-best hitter in Major League Baseball. Mike Trout is penciled in 2nd in the batting order in this matchup. Mike Trout will hold the platoon advantage over Patrick Corbin today. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Mike Trout will hold that advantage in today's matchup.

Luis Rengifo's batting average talent is projected to be in the 79th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). As a switch-hitter who is stronger from the 0 side of the plate, Luis Rengifo will have the advantage of batting from from his good side against Patrick Corbin today. Home field advantage typically improves batter stats across the board, and Luis Rengifo will hold that advantage today. Luis Rengifo has seen a sizeable improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs this year; just compare his 90.3-mph average to last year's 87.5-mph mark. Luis Rengifo's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved from last year to this one, going from 41.4% to 50.2%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Marcus Semien in the 82nd percentile when assessing his overall offensive skill. Marcus Semien is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup today. Batting from the opposite that Yusei Kikuchi throws from, Marcus Semien will have an edge in today's matchup. Marcus Semien's launch angle this year (20.1°) is significantly higher than his 16.7° mark last season. When it comes to his wOBA and overall offense, Marcus Semien has experienced some negative variance this year. His .292 mark falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .323.

Nolan Schanuel's batting average ability is projected to be in the 93rd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Nolan Schanuel is penciled in 3rd in the lineup today. Nolan Schanuel will benefit from the home field advantage today, which ought to bolster all of his stats. Nolan Schanuel's average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this season (17.6°) is quite a bit better than his 13° angle last season. In the last two weeks, Nolan Schanuel's 72.4% rate of hitting balls at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 49.6%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Josh Jung in the 88th percentile when estimating his BABIP ability. Josh Jung is projected to bat 5th in the batting order in this game. Josh Jung will hold the platoon advantage against Yusei Kikuchi in today's game. Josh Jung has been hot in recent games, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 87.9-mph to 96.4-mph in the last 7 days. As it relates to his wOBA and overall offense, Josh Jung has suffered from bad luck this year. His .298 mark falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .317.

The switch-hitting Jonah Heim will get to bat from his strong side (0) today against Yusei Kikuchi.

When estimating his overall offensive ability, Jo Adell ranks in the 85th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Jo Adell is projected to bat 5th in the lineup in this matchup. Jo Adell will have the handedness advantage over Patrick Corbin today. Jo Adell will possess the home field advantage today, which figures to boost all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Sam Haggerty in the 82nd percentile as it relates to his BABIP skill. Sam Haggerty is projected to bat 1st in the lineup in this matchup. The switch-hitting Sam Haggerty will have the advantage of batting from from his better side (0) today against Yusei Kikuchi. Sam Haggerty has gotten much quicker this year, improving from last year's 27.78 ft/sec to 28.92 ft/sec now (according to Statcast's Sprint Speed metric). In terms of plate discipline, Sam Haggerty's skill is quite good, putting up a 2.11 K/BB rate since the start of last season while checking in at in the 79th percentile.

Hitting from the opposite that Patrick Corbin throws from, Kevin Newman will have the upper hand in today's game. Home field advantage generally boosts batter metrics across the board, and Kevin Newman will hold that advantage in today's game.

Kyle Higashioka will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Yusei Kikuchi today.

Travis d'Arnaud has gone over 0.5 in 3 of his last 10 games.

Gustavo Campero has gone over 0.5 in 5 of his last 10 games.