Cincinnati @ Pittsburgh picks

Keller is a fastball-first pitcher against left-handed bats, throwing it nearly 30% more frequently than any other pitch. That’s good news for De La Cruz, who is hitting .319 with a .434 wOBA and eight homers against righties throwing the fastball this season. De La Cruz possesses real power and the speed to turn any ball put in play into extra bases.

Oneil Cruz projects as the 6th-best home run batter in baseball, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Oneil Cruz is penciled in 4th in the lineup in this matchup.. Hitting from the opposite that Chase Burns throws from, Oneil Cruz will have the upper hand today.. Home field advantage generally improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Oneil Cruz will hold that advantage today.. In the last 7 days, Oneil Cruz's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 97.8-mph over the course of the season to 103.5-mph recently.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jack Suwinski in the 93rd percentile when estimating his home run ability.. Jack Suwinski is projected to bat 5th on the lineup card today.. Jack Suwinski will hold the platoon advantage against Chase Burns today.. Home field advantage generally boosts batter metrics across the board, and Jack Suwinski will hold that advantage in today's game.. Jack Suwinski has made notable gains with his Barrel%, bettering his 9% rate last year to 17.1% this season.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Andrew McCutchen in the 80th percentile when assessing his overall offensive talent.. Andrew McCutchen is projected to bat 5th in the batting order today.. PNC Park sits at the 6th-highest elevation among all stadiums. High elevation usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to more offense.. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is projected to have the 5th-highest temperatures on the schedule today at 84°.. Andrew McCutchen will have the benefit of the home field advantage today, which ought to bolster all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Elly De La Cruz as the 2nd-best hitter in MLB when it comes to his BABIP skill.. Elly De La Cruz is projected to bat 3rd in the batting order in today's game.. PNC Park sits at the 6th-highest elevation among all stadiums. High elevation usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to more offense.. The switch-hitting Elly De La Cruz will have the advantage of batting from from his good side (0) today against Mitch Keller.. In notching a .346 wOBA (a leading indicator of offensive ability) this year, Elly De La Cruz has performed in the 77th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Bryan Reynolds in the 95th percentile when it comes to his BABIP talent.. Bryan Reynolds is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup in this game.. PNC Park sits at the 6th-highest elevation among all stadiums. High elevation usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to more offense.. The switch-hitting Bryan Reynolds will get to bat from his better side (0) today against Chase Burns.. Bryan Reynolds will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to boost all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Tyler Stephenson in the 91st percentile as it relates to his BABIP talent.. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is projected to have the 5th-highest temperatures on the schedule today at 84°.. Tyler Stephenson has seen a sizeable gain in his exit velocity recently; just compare his 97.6-mph average in the last week's worth of games to his seasonal 91.6-mph figure.. Tyler Stephenson's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased from last year to this one, rising from 14% to 21.7%.. Tyler Stephenson's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better of late, increasing from 21.8% on the season to 26.7% in the past two weeks.

Gavin Lux's BABIP skill is projected in the 89th percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Gavin Lux is penciled in 5th in the batting order today.. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is projected to have the 5th-highest temperatures on the schedule today at 84°.. Hitting from the opposite that Mitch Keller throws from, Gavin Lux will have an edge in today's matchup.. The Pittsburgh Pirates have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Gavin Lux has a strong chance of holding the advantage against every reliever all game.

PNC Park sits at the 6th-highest elevation among all stadiums. High elevation usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to more offense.. A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is projected to have the 5th-highest temperatures on the schedule today at 84°.. Out of every team on the slate today, the 3rd-worst outfield defense is that of the the Pittsburgh Pirates.. Pittsburgh's 3rd-worst outfield defense of the day creates a favorable matchup for Spencer Steer, who tends to hit a lot of flyballs.. Spencer Steer's launch angle recently (27.5° over the past two weeks) is considerably better than his 18.1° seasonal angle.

Oneil Cruz projects as the 6th-best home run batter in baseball, via the leading projection system (THE BAT X).. Oneil Cruz is penciled in 4th in the lineup in this matchup.. Hitting from the opposite that Chase Burns throws from, Oneil Cruz will have the upper hand today.. Home field advantage generally improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Oneil Cruz will hold that advantage today.. In the last 7 days, Oneil Cruz's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 97.8-mph over the course of the season to 103.5-mph recently.

PNC Park sits at the 6th-highest elevation among all stadiums. High elevation usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to more offense.. Mitch Keller's fastball velocity has decreased 1.2 mph this season (93.3 mph) below where it was last year (94.5 mph).. Ranking in the 20th percentile, Mitch Keller posted an 8.8% Swinging Strike percentage this year.