Todays Game 2 Matchup Details

Player match stat positives for Houston at Tampa Bay Game 2 Matchup Today

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Yainer Diaz as the 16th-best hitter in the majors as it relates to his batting average ability.

Yainer Diaz is projected to hit 4th in the batting order in this matchup.

Yainer Diaz has an 82nd percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34.8%) and sets up very well considering he’ll be hitting them out towards the game’s 5th-shallowest RF fences in today’s game.

Yainer Diaz has seen a substantial increase in his exit velocity on flyballs in recent games; just compare his 99.3-mph average in the past two weeks’ worth of games to his seasonal average of 92.4-mph.

Yainer Diaz has been unlucky in regards to his home runs this year; his 15.2 HR per 600 plate appearances rate is a fair amount lower than his 19.6 Expected HR/600, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s interpretation of Statcast data.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Altuve in the 93rd percentile when estimating his batting average skill.

Jose Altuve is projected to bat 1st on the lineup card in this matchup.

Jose Altuve pulls many of his flyballs (41.6% — 99th percentile) and will have a big advantage hitting them towards the game’s 6th-shallowest LF fences in today’s matchup.

Over the past week, Jose Altuve has significantly improved the launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls: 29.6° compared to his seasonal mark of 17.9°.

Jose Altuve has notched a .351 wOBA (the best measure of overall offense) this year, placing in the 86th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jake Meyers in the 76th percentile when assessing his BABIP ability.

Among all major league parks, Tropicana Field’s LF dimensions are the 6th-shallowest.

In the past week’s worth of games, Jake Meyers’s 30.8% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 18.6%.

Jake Meyers’s ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has increased from last year to this one, rising from 40% to 46.6%.

In terms of his wOBA and overall offense, Jake Meyers has had bad variance on his side this year. His .297 mark falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .343.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Curtis Mead in the 78th percentile when it comes to his batting average talent.

Curtis Mead will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Yusei Kikuchi in today’s game.

Curtis Mead has an 88th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (35.9%) and will have a big advantage hitting them out towards the league’s 5th-shallowest RF fences in today’s game.

Curtis Mead will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today’s game, which ought to boost all of his stats.

Based on Statcast data, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Expected wOBA (.317) provides evidence that Curtis Mead has suffered from bad luck this year with his .263 actual wOBA.

Jon Singleton will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Shane Baz today.

Over the last 7 days, Jon Singleton’s Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 7.2% up to 16.7%.

Jon Singleton’s launch angle in recent games (27° in the last 14 days) is a significant increase over his 10.9° seasonal mark.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Christopher Morel in the 95th percentile as it relates to his home run skill.

Christopher Morel is projected to hit 4th in the batting order in today’s game.

Christopher Morel will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Yusei Kikuchi in today’s game.

Christopher Morel pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (38.2% — 96th percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he’ll be hitting them towards the game’s 6th-shallowest LF fences in today’s game.

Christopher Morel will benefit from the home field advantage in today’s matchup, which should bolster all of his stats.

When it comes to his overall offensive talent, Alex Bregman ranks in the 94th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).

Alex Bregman is projected to hit 2nd in the lineup today.

Alex Bregman has made big strides with his Barrel% in recent games, improving his 5% seasonal rate to 14.3% in the last week’s worth of games.

Alex Bregman has seen a notable increase in his exit velocity in recent games; just compare his 94.6-mph average in the past week to his seasonal 89-mph figure.

As it relates to plate discipline, Alex Bregman’s talent is quite good, putting up a 1.81 K/BB rate this year while ranking in in the 85th percentile.

Jose Caballero has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this year (94% of the time), but he is penciled in 1st in the lineup in this game.

Batting from the opposite that Yusei Kikuchi throws from, Jose Caballero will have the upper hand in today’s matchup.

Jose Caballero pulls a lot of his flyballs (38.9% — 97th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards MLB’s 6th-shallowest LF fences in today’s game.

Home field advantage typically bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Jose Caballero will hold that advantage in today’s game.

In the past 14 days, Jose Caballero’s exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 89.9-mph over the course of the season to 98-mph of late.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Yainer Diaz ranks in the 85th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).

As it relates to his home run skill, Jose Siri ranks in the 92nd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Jose Siri will have the handedness advantage against Yusei Kikuchi in today’s matchup.

Jose Siri pulls many of his flyballs (35.5% — 89th percentile) and has the good fortune of hitting them towards the game’s 6th-shallowest LF fences today.

Jose Siri will hold the home field advantage in today’s matchup, which should improve all of his stats.

Jose Siri has seen a significant gain in his exit velocity in recent games; just compare his 91.6-mph average in the last two weeks to his seasonal 88.6-mph mark.

Jonny Deluca is projected to bat 5th on the lineup card in today’s game, which would be an upgrade from his 78% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the batting order this year.

Jonny Deluca will have the handedness advantage over Yusei Kikuchi today.

Jonny Deluca will hold the home field advantage in today’s matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats.

Jonny Deluca has seen a significant gain in his exit velocity in recent games; just compare his 87.4-mph average over the past week to his seasonal 85.1-mph average.

The Houston Astros have 3 hitters in their projected lineup today with a high (i.e. over 27%) underlying K% (according to the leading projection system, THE BAT X) (Pedro Leon, Chas McCormick, Jon Singleton).

It is anticipated that we will see a Pitchers Umpire (Jim Wolf) in charge of the strike zone today.

Tropicana Field projects as the #4 field in the league for strikeouts, via the leading projection system (THE BAT).

Shane Baz will have the handedness advantage against 7 opposing hitters in this game.

When estimating his overall offensive skill, Jose Altuve ranks in the 88th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 93rd percentile as it relates to his batting average ability.

Jeremy Pena is penciled in 5th in the lineup today.

In terms of his wOBA and overall offense, Jeremy Pena has had bad variance on his side this year. His .304 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Statcast-based Expected wOBA (xwOBA) at .325.

Utilizing Statcast metrics, Jeremy Pena is in the 90th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Expected Batting Average this year at .282.

Dylan Carlson has primarily hit in the back-half of the lineup this season (79% of the time), but he is projected to hit 2nd in the batting order in this game.

The switch-hitting Dylan Carlson will have the advantage of batting from from his good side (0) today against Yusei Kikuchi.

Home field advantage generally improves batter stats in all categories, and Dylan Carlson will hold that advantage in today’s matchup.

Last year, Dylan Carlson had an average launch angle of 15° on his hardest-contacted balls, while this season it has significantly increased to 24.9°.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT)’s evaluation, Yusei Kikuchi’s overall pitching skill ranks in the 79th percentile among all starters in the league currently.

Yusei Kikuchi has averaged 93 adjusted pitches per game per started this year, ranking in the 80th percentile.

It may be best to expect worse numbers for the Tampa Bay Rays offense going forward, considering that the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes they are the 6th-luckiest offense in baseball this year.

The #3 stadium in the game for suppressing batting average, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Tropicana Field.

Alex Bregman’s ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better in recent games, increasing from 42.7% on the season to 52.4% in the last week.

Yordan Alvarez projects as the 2nd-best hitter in the game, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Yordan Alvarez is penciled in 3rd in the lineup today.

Batting from the opposite that Shane Baz throws from, Yordan Alvarez will have the upper hand in today’s game.

Yordan Alvarez has been hot recently, raising his seasonal exit velocity of 92.9-mph to 98.7-mph over the last 7 days.

In the past week, Yordan Alvarez’s 50% rate of hitting balls at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 43.1%.

Jose Caballero has seen a significant increase in his exit velocity on flyballs this season; just compare his 89.9-mph average to last season’s 87.7-mph average.

When it comes to his strikeout talent, Yusei Kikuchi projects as the 18th-best starting pitcher in the majors currently, per the leading projection system (THE BAT).

The Tampa Bay Rays have 3 batters in their projected offense today with a high (i.e. over 27%) underlying K% (per the leading projection system, THE BAT X) (Ben Rortvedt, Jose Siri, Christopher Morel).

When it comes to his overall offensive skill, Yandy Diaz ranks in the 95th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).

Yandy Diaz is projected to hit 3rd in the batting order in today’s game.

Yandy Diaz will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Yusei Kikuchi today.

Yandy Diaz has a 98th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (41.4%) and will have a big advantage hitting them in the direction of the game’s 5th-shallowest RF fences in today’s game.

Yandy Diaz will possess the home field advantage in today’s matchup, which figures to boost all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Yandy Diaz as the 14th-best hitter in the game when it comes to his batting average ability.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Chas McCormick in the 82nd percentile when estimating his BABIP ability.

Chas McCormick has a 90th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (36.4%) and has the good fortune of hitting them out towards the game’s 5th-shallowest RF fences in today’s game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Chas McCormick’s true offensive skill to be a .311, implying that he has experienced some negative variance this year given the .056 discrepancy between that figure and his actual .255 wOBA.

In the last two weeks’ worth of games, Yordan Alvarez has significantly improved the launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls: 16.1° compared to his seasonal mark of 12.3°.

Sporting a .345 Expected wOBA (or xwOBA, an advanced metric created by the leading projection system (THE BAT X) based on Statcast data) this year, Yainer Diaz is ranked in the 83rd percentile for offensive skills.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Christopher Morel in the 84th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive skill.

Chas McCormick’s average launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls recently (32° in the past week) is considerably better than his 14.8° seasonal mark.

Houston has been the #2 offense in baseball when it comes to hitting balls between -4° and 26°, the launch angle range that tends to result the most in base hits (44.1% rate this year).

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Siri in the 89th percentile when assessing his BABIP skill.

Tuesday Game 2 player match stat slumps with Astros vs Rays Matchup

Tropicana Field grades out as the #28 ballpark in the game for run-scoring, via the leading projection system (THE BAT).

The Tropicana Field roof figures to be closed today, making weather conditions in this game -5° colder than the average outdoor game of all games today — favorable for pitching.

Hitting from the same side that Shane Baz throws from, Yainer Diaz will have a tough challenge in today’s matchup.

Out of all the teams in action today, the 3rd-best infield defense is that of the Tampa Bay Rays.

Yainer Diaz will be at a disadvantage playing on the visting team in today’s game.

Shane Baz will have the handedness advantage against Jose Altuve in today’s game.

Playing on the road typically weakens batter metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which should be the case for Jose Altuve today.

Jake Meyers is projected to bat 7th in the batting order in this matchup.

Shane Baz will have the handedness advantage over Jake Meyers in today’s matchup.

Curtis Mead is penciled in 7th in the batting order in this game.

Out of all the teams on the slate today, the 2nd-best infield defense is that of the Houston Astros.

Curtis Mead’s average exit velocity has dropped off of late; his 88.3-mph seasonal figure has fallen to 78.4-mph over the past week.

Jon Singleton’s batting average ability is projected to be in the 3rd percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Jon Singleton is projected to bat 6th in the lineup in this game.

The #4 field in the game for suppressing BABIP to lefties, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Tropicana Field.

Jon Singleton hits many of his flyballs to center field (39.2% — 94th percentile) and will be challenged by MLB’s 9th-deepest CF fences in today’s game.

Christopher Morel’s average exit velocity has fallen off this season; his 91.9-mph average last season has fallen off to 89.5-mph.

Christopher Morel’s average exit velocity has decreased lately; his 89.5-mph seasonal figure has fallen off to 86.6-mph in the last 14 days.

Batting from the same side that Shane Baz throws from, Alex Bregman will have a disadvantage today.

Alex Bregman hits many of his flyballs to center field (38.5% — 85th percentile) and has the misfortune of hitting them in the direction of the league’s 9th-deepest CF fences today.

Alex Bregman will be at a disadvantage playing on the road in today’s game.

Alex Bregman’s ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has declined recently, falling from 14.8% on the season to 9.5% in the last week.

The #4 field in the majors for suppressing BABIP to righties, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Tropicana Field.

Utilizing Statcast data, Jose Caballero grades out in the 21st percentile for offensive skills per the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Expected wOBA (xwOBA) this year at .287.

Based on Statcast data, Jose Caballero grades out in the 23rd percentile for power per the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Expected Home Runs per 600 plate appearances this year at 12.700.

Yainer Diaz’s ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has decreased from last year to this one, going from 21.6% to 11.2%.

In the past week, Yainer Diaz’s 5.3% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 11.2%.

Jose Siri is projected to hit 6th in the batting order in this game.

As it relates to plate discipline, Jose Siri’s skill is quite bad, posting a 4.6 K/BB rate this year while placing in in the 11th percentile.

Christopher Morel’s ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has decreased of late, falling from 15.5% on the season to 7.7% in the last week’s worth of games.

Over the last two weeks, Jonny Deluca has recorded a mere a 0% Barrel%, indicating a decline in power ability.

Jonny Deluca has recorded a .260 wOBA (the best measure of overall offense) this year, checking in at the 7th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Shane Baz to throw 81 pitches in this game (6th-least on the slate), considering both his underlying tendencies and the matchup.

Shane Baz wasn’t on when it came to striking batters out in his last GS and put up 2 Ks.

Jose Altuve has been cold in recent games, with his seasonal exit velocity of 86.4-mph dropping to 82.6-mph over the last 7 days.

Jose Altuve’s exit velocity on flyballs has fallen off this year; his 92.9-mph EV last year has decreased to 90.4-mph.

Batting from the same side that Shane Baz throws from, Jeremy Pena will have a tough challenge in today’s matchup.

Playing on the road generally lessens batter metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which ought to be the case for Jeremy Pena today.

Dylan Carlson’s average exit velocity has fallen off this year; his 89.4-mph average last year has dropped to 86.1-mph.

By putting up a .202 Expected Batting Average (an advanced metric created by the leading projection system (THE BAT X) based on Statcast data) this year , Dylan Carlson finds himself in the 17th percentile.

Projected catcher Yainer Diaz profiles as a weak pitch framer, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT).

Tropicana Field has the 5th-shallowest right field dimensions among all major league parks.

With 8 bats of the opposite hand in the opposing team’s projected offense, Yusei Kikuchi has a tough challenge while lacking the platoon advantage in most plate appearances in today’s outing.

Playing on the road generally reduces pitcher metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which ought to be the case for Yusei Kikuchi in today’s game.

Yusei Kikuchi has utilized his slider 7.8% less often this year (18.2%) than he did last year (26%).

Yordan Alvarez hits many of his flyballs to center field (38.8% — 90th percentile) and has the misfortune of hitting them towards baseball’s 9th-deepest CF fences in today’s game.

Tampa Bay’s #3-ranked outfield defense of all teams on the slate today poses a formidable challenge for Yordan Alvarez, who tends to hit a lot of flyballs.

Jonny Deluca has compiled a .315 Slugging Percentage (SLG) this year, ranking in the 9th percentile.

Jose Caballero has shown weak plate discipline this year, placing in the 8th percentile with a 4.82 K/BB rate.

With a 0.24 deviation between Yusei Kikuchi’s 10.59 K/9 and his 10.35 estimated true talent K/9 (via the leading projection system, THE BAT), it’s safe to say he’s been one of the most fortunate pitchers in Major League Baseball this year as it relates to strikeouts and ought to see worse results going forward.

Yandy Diaz’s average launch angle on his highest exit velocity balls this year (0.2°) is considerably worse than his 4.9° figure last season.

Over the last 14 days, Yandy Diaz’s 7.4% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 10.9%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jeremy Pena in the 19th percentile when it comes to his home run ability.

Jeremy Pena has been cold of late, with his seasonal exit velocity of 87.9-mph dropping to 84.1-mph in the past two weeks.

Yandy Diaz’s ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has declined lately, falling from 40.1% on the season to 25% in the past week’s worth of games.

In the past week’s worth of games, Curtis Mead’s 0% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 11.6%.

Curtis Mead has been cold lately, notching a 0% Barrel% (an advanced standard to measure power) over the past 7 days.

Chas McCormick is penciled in 8th in the batting order in this game.

Hitting from the same side that Shane Baz throws from, Chas McCormick faces a tough challenge in today’s game.

Yordan Alvarez will be at a disadvantage playing on the road today.

Yordan Alvarez’s average launch angle on his hardest-hit balls this year (12.3°) is a considerable dropoff from his 15.8° figure last season.

Dylan Carlson has paced 7.0 Expected Home Runs per 600 plate appearances this year, checking in at the 18th percentile for power according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s interpretation of Statcast data.

Ranking in the 22nd percentile, Dylan Carlson has put up a .281 Slugging Percentage (SLG) this year.

Over the last two weeks, Jose Siri’s 9.1% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has taken a nosedive compared to his seasonal rate of 19.7%.

Jake Meyers will be at a disadvantage playing away from home in today’s game.

Jake Meyers has negatively regressed with his Barrel% recently; his 8.9% seasonal rate has dropped to 3.7% in the past 14 days.

Chas McCormick will be at a disadvantage playing on the road in today’s game.

In the last week’s worth of games, Chas McCormick’s Barrel% has experienced a negative regression, plummeting from his seasonal rate of 7.9% down to 0%.

Jon Singleton will be at a disadvantage playing away from home in today’s matchup.

Jon Singleton has been cold recently, with his seasonal exit velocity of 89.1-mph dropping to 82.6-mph over the past 7 days.