San Diego @ Chicago Picks & Props

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Andrew Benintendi in the 80th percentile when assessing his batting average ability. HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league. Batting from the opposite that Yu Darvish throws from, Andrew Benintendi will have the upper hand today. Andrew Benintendi will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to improve all of his stats. Andrew Benintendi has made sizeable gains with his Barrel% lately, bettering his 10.9% seasonal rate to 17.6% in the last 14 days.

As it relates to his overall offensive skill, Manny Machado ranks in the 94th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Manny Machado is projected to hit 3rd in the lineup in this matchup. HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league. Manny Machado has made big improvements with his Barrel% recently, upping his 12.5% seasonal rate to 21.4% in the last 7 days. Manny Machado has seen a big increase in his exit velocity on flyballs this year; just compare his 95.4-mph average to last season's 93.4-mph figure.

Kyle Teel's BABIP ability is projected in the 92nd percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Kyle Teel is projected to bat 2nd in the lineup in this matchup. HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league. Hitting from the opposite that Yu Darvish throws from, Kyle Teel will have an edge in today's game. Kyle Teel will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to bolster all of his stats.

Lenyn Sosa has a 78th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34.1%) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards MLB's 9th-shallowest RF fences in today's matchup. Lenyn Sosa will have the benefit of the home field advantage today, which figures to improve all of his stats. Lenyn Sosa has seen a notable improvement in his exit velocity lately; just compare his 93.8-mph average in the past week to his seasonal 90.8-mph average. There has been a significant improvement in Lenyn Sosa's launch angle from last season's 12.4° to 18.2° this season.

When assessing his overall offensive skill, Jake Cronenworth ranks in the 84th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league. Jake Cronenworth will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Yoendrys Gomez in today's game. Over the past week, Jake Cronenworth's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 90.3-mph over the course of the season to 98.5-mph recently. Jake Cronenworth's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased lately, rising from 14.5% on the season to 24.1% in the past two weeks' worth of games.

Ryan O'Hearn's batting average talent is projected to be in the 92nd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Ryan O'Hearn will have the handedness advantage against Yoendrys Gomez today. Ryan O'Hearn has a 92nd percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (36.6%) and will have a big advantage hitting them out towards the league's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Ryan O'Hearn's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased in recent games, going from 19.4% on the season to 30% in the last 7 days. Ryan O'Hearn's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better from last season to this one, rising from 40.8% to 46.2%.

Miguel Vargas is projected to hit 4th in the lineup in this matchup. Miguel Vargas pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (33.1% — 76th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting them towards MLB's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Miguel Vargas will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to bolster all of his stats. In the past week's worth of games, Miguel Vargas's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 8.4% up to 16.7%. Miguel Vargas's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has gotten better lately, going from 16.9% on the season to 33.3% in the past week's worth of games.

HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Luis Arraez as the 5th-best batter in MLB when assessing his batting average ability. Luis Arraez is penciled in 2nd in the lineup in this game. Hitting from the opposite that Yoendrys Gomez throws from, Luis Arraez will have an edge in today's game. Luis Arraez has a 99th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (42.1%) and has the good fortune of hitting them in the direction of MLB's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Luis Arraez's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved of late, rising from 49.7% on the season to 64.3% in the last week's worth of games.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ramon Laureano in the 86th percentile when assessing his overall offensive skill. Ramon Laureano is projected to bat 5th on the lineup card in this matchup. Ramon Laureano pulls many of his flyballs (33% — 75th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the game's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's game. In the past week's worth of games, Ramon Laureano's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 13.6% up to 20%. Ramon Laureano has been hot of late, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 90.5-mph to 95.9-mph in the past week's worth of games.

Hitting from the opposite that Yoendrys Gomez throws from, Gavin Sheets will have an advantage in today's matchup. Gavin Sheets pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (34.7% — 86th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards baseball's 9th-shallowest RF fences in today's game. This season, Gavin Sheets has experienced a significant increase in his exit velocity on flyballs, now sitting at an average of 94.2 mph compared to last year's 90.8 mph mark. Gavin Sheets has seen a big improvement in his exit velocity on flyballs of late; just compare his 97.1-mph average in the past two weeks' worth of games to his seasonal EV of 94.2-mph. Gavin Sheets has compiled a .342 Expected wOBA (xwOBA) this year, checking in at the 79th percentile for hitting ability according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

Mike Tauchman is penciled in 5th in the lineup in today's game. Mike Tauchman will have the handedness advantage against Yu Darvish in today's game. Mike Tauchman has an 82nd percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34.7%) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards the game's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Home field advantage typically improves batter stats across the board, and Mike Tauchman will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Mike Tauchman's launch angle of late (7.6° over the past 7 days) is considerably worse than his 16.3° seasonal mark.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Fernando Tatis Jr. ranks as the 8th-best batter in MLB. Fernando Tatis Jr. is projected to bat 1st on the lineup card today. HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league. In the past two weeks' worth of games, Fernando Tatis Jr.'s 21.1% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 15.2%. Fernando Tatis Jr. has been unlucky this year, posting a .350 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .377 — a .027 deviation.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Edgar Quero in the 83rd percentile when estimating his batting average talent. Edgar Quero has a 98th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (39.8%) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them in the direction of the game's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's matchup. Edgar Quero will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats. Over the past 14 days, Edgar Quero's 21.1% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 14.4%. Ranking in the 92nd percentile, Edgar Quero has put up a .337 BABIP this year.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jackson Merrill in the 96th percentile when estimating his batting average skill. Jackson Merrill is projected to hit 4th on the lineup card in this game. Hitting from the opposite that Yoendrys Gomez throws from, Jackson Merrill will have an advantage today. Jackson Merrill has a 91st percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (36.4%) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them in the direction of baseball's 5th-shallowest LF fences in today's game. Jackson Merrill has made significant improvements with his Barrel% recently, bettering his 13.3% seasonal rate to 32.3% over the last two weeks.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Chase Meidroth in the 80th percentile when estimating his batting average talent. Chase Meidroth is projected to bat 1st in the batting order in today's game. Chase Meidroth has a 94th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (37.5%) and has the good fortune of hitting them in the direction of the game's 9th-shallowest RF fences in today's matchup. Chase Meidroth will hold the home field advantage today, which ought to bolster all of his stats. Chase Meidroth has made big improvements with his Barrel% in recent games, improving his 1.7% seasonal rate to 7.1% over the past week.

HRs are generally more common at ballparks with shallow fences, and Guaranteed Rate Field has the 3rd-shallowest in the league. Will Robertson will hold the platoon advantage over Yu Darvish today. Home field advantage generally bolsters batter metrics across the board, and Will Robertson will hold that advantage in today's matchup. In the last week's worth of games, Will Robertson's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 9.7% up to 16.7%. Will Robertson has seen a significant gain in his exit velocity of late; just compare his 89.1-mph average in the past 7 days to his seasonal 84.4-mph EV.

Colson Montgomery is projected to hit 3rd on the lineup card in today's game. Hitting from the opposite that Yu Darvish throws from, Colson Montgomery will have the upper hand in today's game. Colson Montgomery pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (36.3% — 92nd percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting them towards baseball's 9th-shallowest RF fences in today's matchup. Home field advantage typically boosts batter metrics across the board, and Colson Montgomery will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Colson Montgomery's 97.9-mph exit velocity on flyballs (a reliable standard to assess power) ranks in the 96th percentile this year.

Elias Diaz has gone over 0.5 in 2 of his last 10 games.