Chicago @ Los Angeles Picks & Props

Michael Busch will be at a disadvantage playing away from home today. Despite posting a .360 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Michael Busch has had some very good luck given the .019 deviation between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .341.

Kyle Tucker will be at a disadvantage playing as a visiting player in today's game. Kyle Tucker's average exit velocity has declined lately; his 90.1-mph seasonal EV has decreased to 82-mph over the last 7 days. Kyle Tucker's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls this year (16.6°) is considerably worse than his 19.7° figure last season. Kyle Tucker's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has dropped off in recent games, going from 42.6% on the season to 7.7% over the last week.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Taylor Ward ranks in the 94th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Taylor Ward is penciled in 3rd on the lineup card today. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter metrics across the board, and Taylor Ward will hold that advantage today.

The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Nolan Schanuel's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls this season (17.1°) is a significant increase over his 13° angle last season. In the past two weeks, Nolan Schanuel's 73.8% rate of hitting balls at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 51.4%. When it comes to his batting average, Nolan Schanuel has suffered from bad luck this year. His .267 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected Batting Average (xBA) at .282.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Nico Hoerner as the 15th-best hitter in Major League Baseball when it comes to his batting average ability. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Among every team on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest infield defense is that of the Los Angeles Angels. Over the past two weeks, Nico Hoerner's 62.5% rate of hitting balls at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 49.3%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Zach Neto in the 88th percentile when assessing his overall offensive ability. Zach Neto is penciled in 1st in the batting order in this matchup. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Zach Neto will hold the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to boost all of his stats.

Kyle Hendricks will have the handedness advantage over Seiya Suzuki in today's game. Seiya Suzuki will be at a disadvantage playing as a visiting player in today's matchup.

The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats in all categories, and Travis d'Arnaud will hold that advantage in today's game. Travis d'Arnaud's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has improved from last season to this one, going from 12.2% to 20.9%. This year, Travis d'Arnaud's 13.2% Barrel%, a reliable standard for measuring power, places him in the 85th percentile among his peers.

The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Batting from the opposite that Jameson Taillon throws from, Niko Kavadas will have an edge in today's matchup. Home field advantage generally improves hitter stats across the board, and Niko Kavadas will hold that advantage in today's game. Since the start of last season, Niko Kavadas's flyball exit velocity (an advanced metric to evaluate power) grades out in the 76th percentile at 94 mph.

Christian Moore's BABIP skill is projected in the 90th percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Christian Moore will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should bolster all of his stats.

Carson Kelly is penciled in 5th in the batting order in today's game. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Among every team on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest infield defense is that of the Los Angeles Angels. Compared to his seasonal average of 15.7°, Carson Kelly has significantly improved his launch angle recently, posting a 28.7° mark in the last 14 days.

When it comes to his overall offensive talent, Yoan Moncada ranks in the 83rd percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Yoan Moncada is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in this game. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. As a switch-hitter who performs better from the 0 side of the dish, Yoan Moncada will get to bat from his good side against Jameson Taillon in this game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Dansby Swanson in the 86th percentile when assessing his BABIP ability. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Among every team on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest infield defense is that of the Los Angeles Angels. Dansby Swanson has seen a big gain in his exit velocity on flyballs lately; just compare his 97.4-mph average in the last two weeks to his seasonal mark of 94.4-mph.

When assessing his overall offensive ability, Jo Adell ranks in the 87th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Jo Adell is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in today's game, which would be an upgrade from his 67% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the lineup this season. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Home field advantage generally bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Jo Adell will hold that advantage today.

The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Among every team on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest infield defense is that of the Los Angeles Angels. In the last 7 days, Matt Shaw's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 7.1% up to 27.3%. Over the last two weeks, Matt Shaw's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 91.4-mph over the course of the season to 95.1-mph in recent games.

Luis Rengifo's batting average ability is projected to be in the 82nd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Luis Rengifo is penciled in 5th in the batting order in this matchup, which would be an upgrade from his 80% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the lineup this year. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Luis Rengifo will hold that advantage today.

Mike Trout projects as the 16th-best batter in baseball, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Mike Trout is projected to bat 2nd in the lineup in this matchup. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Mike Trout will benefit from the home field advantage in today's game, which should bolster all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ian Happ in the 89th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive skill. The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. The switch-hitting Ian Happ will hold the platoon advantage while batting from from his better side (0) today against Kyle Hendricks. Among every team on the slate today, the 3rd-weakest infield defense is that of the Los Angeles Angels.

The weather report projects temperatures in this matchup to reach the highest level of the day at 88°, which is highly linked to an increase in offense (and a reduction in strikeouts). The wind projects to be blowing out to RF at 8.1-mph in this contest, the 5th-strongest of the day for batters. Home field advantage typically improves batter stats in all categories, and Bryce Teodosio will hold that advantage today. Over the last week, Bryce Teodosio's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 2.9% up to 10%.

Pete Crow-Armstrong has gone over 0.5 in 5 of his last 10 games.