Todays Game 2 Matchup Details

Player match stat positives for Boston at Kansas City Game 2 Matchup Today

The leading projection system (THE BAT) ranks Kauffman Stadium as the 2nd-best ballpark in the league for lefty batting average.

Kauffman Stadium sits at the 4th-highest altitude among all stadiums. High elevation usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to higher offensive output.

A correlation exists between high heat and more offense (and fewer Ks), and this game is forecasted to have the 5th-hottest weather on the slate today at 83°.

MJ Melendez will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Brayan Bello in today’s game… and the cherry on top, Bello has a large platoon split.

MJ Melendez will hold the home field advantage in today’s matchup, which ought to improve all of his stats.

Ceddanne Rafaela’s BABIP skill is projected in the 81st percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

The leading projection system (THE BAT) projects Kauffman Stadium as the 2nd-best field in baseball for RHB batting average.

Kauffman Stadium has the 10th-shortest fences among all major league parks.

Freddy Fermin is projected to bat 1st on the lineup card in today’s game, which would be an upgrade from his 85% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the batting order this year.

When estimating his batting average talent, Bobby Witt Jr. is projected as the 6th-best batter in Major League Baseball by the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Bobby Witt Jr. is penciled in 2nd in the batting order today.

When it comes to his home run talent, MJ Melendez ranks in the 88th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Given Brayan Bello’s large platoon split, Kyle Isbel will have a gigantic advantage hitting from the opposite side of the dish today.

Kyle Isbel will benefit from the home field advantage in today’s game, which should improve all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Vinnie Pasquantino in the 89th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive ability.

Vinnie Pasquantino is projected to hit 3rd on the lineup card in this game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Wilyer Abreu in the 88th percentile when it comes to his home run skill.

Wilyer Abreu is projected to bat 2nd on the lineup card in this game.

Michael Massey will hold the platoon advantage against Brayan Bello in today’s game… and the cherry on top, Bello has a large platoon split.

Compared to his seasonal average of 14°, Ceddanne Rafaela has significantly improved his launch angle recently, posting a 26.6° angle over the past week.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Connor Wong in the 76th percentile when estimating his BABIP talent.

Connor Wong is projected to bat 5th in the batting order today.

As it relates to his home run skill, Salvador Perez ranks in the 91st percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Salvador Perez is penciled in 4th in the lineup in this game.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jarren Duran as the 10th-best batter in MLB when estimating his BABIP talent.

Jarren Duran is projected to hit 1st in the lineup in this matchup.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Rafael Devers ranks as the 15th-best hitter in the game.

Rafael Devers is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in today’s game.

Extreme flyball batters like Michael Massey usually hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Brayan Bello.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Wilyer Abreu in the 81st percentile when assessing his overall offensive talent.

Projected catcher Connor Wong grades out as a weak pitch framer, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT).

The #1 park in the game for boosting walks, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Kauffman Stadium.

Because flyball batters hold a significant advantage over groundball pitchers, Brayan Bello and his 51.4% underlying GB% (via the leading projection system, THE BAT) will be in a difficult spot today going up against 0 opposing GB bats.

As it relates to his home run skill, Hunter Renfroe ranks in the 77th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Hunter Renfroe is projected to hit 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 batting order this year.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), Bobby Witt Jr. ranks as the 13th-best hitter in Major League Baseball.

Batting from the opposite that Seth Lugo throws from, David Hamilton will have the upper hand in today’s matchup.

In the last week, David Hamilton’s Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 5% up to 14.3%.

Brayan Bello has averaged 91.4 adjusted pitches per GS this year, ranking in the 75th percentile.

When estimating his overall offensive talent, Jarren Duran ranks in the 91st percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).

Home field advantage generally improves hitter metrics across the board, and Hunter Renfroe will hold that advantage in today’s matchup.

Ceddanne Rafaela and his 18° launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls rank in 93rd percentile, among the highest in MLB this year.

When estimating his overall offensive ability, Masataka Yoshida ranks in the 84th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X).

Masataka Yoshida has primarily hit in the back-half of the batting order this year (55% of the time), but he is projected to bat 3rd on the lineup card in today’s game.

Hitting from the opposite that Seth Lugo throws from, Masataka Yoshida will have an advantage today.

Dominic Smith will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Seth Lugo in today’s game.

Dominic Smith has made significant improvements with his Barrel% in recent games, bettering his 9.8% seasonal rate to 19% over the past two weeks.

With 7 batters of opposing handedness in the opposing team’s projected batting order, Seth Lugo will be at a disadvantage while lacking the platoon advantage in most plate appearances in today’s matchup.

Seth Lugo’s 91.7-mph velocity on his fastball this season is a notable 1.1-mph decline from last season’s 92.8-mph figure.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Masataka Yoshida in the 93rd percentile when it comes to his batting average ability.

Freddy Fermin will benefit from the home field advantage today, which should improve all of his stats.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Salvador Perez in the 79th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive ability.

In notching a .351 wOBA (a leading indicator of offensive ability) this year, Connor Wong finds himself in the 85th percentile.

Ranking in the 77th percentile, Connor Wong sits with a .446 Slugging Percentage (SLG) this year.

In his last GS, Brayan Bello was in good form and put up 7 strikeouts.

Out of all starters, Brayan Bello’s fastball velocity of 95.2 mph ranks in the 86th percentile this year.

Over the last 14 days, David Hamilton’s 27.8% rate of hitting balls at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 16.8%.

Tallying 96 adjusted pitches per start this year on average, Seth Lugo places in the 92nd percentile.

The Boston Red Sox have 3 batters in their projected offense today with a high (i.e. over 27%) underlying K% (via the leading projection system, THE BAT X) (David Hamilton, Connor Wong, Wilyer Abreu).

Home field advantage generally boosts pitcher stats across the board, and Seth Lugo will hold that advantage in today’s matchup.

Seth Lugo’s fastball spin rate has spiked 104 rpm this season (2371 rpm) over where it was last season (2267 rpm).

Tuesday Game 2 player match stat slumps with Red Sox vs Royals Matchup

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects MJ Melendez in the 23rd percentile when it comes to his BABIP talent.

MJ Melendez is projected to hit 8th on the lineup card in this matchup.

The wind projects to be blowing in from LF at 13.1-mph in this game, the 3rd-best of the day for pitchers.

MJ Melendez pulls a lot of his flyballs (35.3% — 88th percentile) and has the misfortune of hitting them in the direction of baseball’s deepest RF fences today.

MJ Melendez’s average exit velocity has declined this season; his 93.2-mph mark last year has decreased to 90.9-mph.

Ceddanne Rafaela is penciled in 9th in the batting order in this matchup.

Hitting from the same side that Seth Lugo throws from, Ceddanne Rafaela faces a tough challenge in today’s game.

Today, Ceddanne Rafaela is at a disadvantage facing the league’s deepest RF fences given that he hits his flyballs to the opposite field at a 34% rate (78th percentile).

Ceddanne Rafaela will be at a disadvantage playing as a visiting player in today’s game.

Brayan Bello will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Freddy Fermin in today’s matchup… and it’s an even bigger mismatch considering Bello’s large platoon split.

Freddy Fermin pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (35.4% — 89th percentile) and will be challenged by the league’s 4th-deepest LF fences in today’s game.

Freddy Fermin has taken a step back with his Barrel%; his 10.1% rate last year has lowered to 4.1% this season.

Freddy Fermin’s exit velocity on flyballs has fallen off this season; his 92.7-mph average last year has fallen to 90-mph.

Because of Brayan Bello’s large platoon split, Bobby Witt Jr. will be at a massive disadvantage batting from the same side of the plate in today’s game.

In today’s matchup, Bobby Witt Jr. is at a disadvantage facing the league’s deepest RF fences given that he hits his flyballs to the opposite field at a 36.3% rate (90th percentile).

Over the last week, Bobby Witt Jr.’s exit velocity on flyballs has fallen off from his seasonal mark of 94.3 mph to 87.7 mph.

Bobby Witt Jr.’s launch angle recently (-3.1° over the last week) is quite a bit worse than his 15.4° seasonal figure.

MJ Melendez’s ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has decreased of late, going from 38.6% on the season to 28.6% over the past 7 days.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Kyle Isbel in the 21st percentile when estimating his BABIP skill.

Kyle Isbel is projected to bat 9th in the lineup in this matchup.

Among all major league stadiums, Kauffman Stadium’s RF fences are the deepest.

Kyle Isbel’s average exit velocity has dropped off of late; his 88.1-mph seasonal mark has decreased to 77.1-mph over the past week.

The #6 stadium in baseball for suppressing home runs to left-handed hitters, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Kauffman Stadium.

Vinnie Pasquantino pulls a lot of his flyballs (36.2% — 92nd percentile) and will have to hit them out towards MLB’s deepest RF fences today.

This year, Wilyer Abreu has been pulled from the game early in 25% of his appearances when starting against right-handed pitcher.

Wilyer Abreu hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39.2% — 94th percentile) and will be challenged by baseball’s 4th-deepest CF fences in today’s matchup.

Wilyer Abreu will be at a disadvantage playing on the road in today’s game.

Michael Massey’s BABIP ability is projected in the 18th percentile by the leading projection system (THE BAT X).

Michael Massey is penciled in 6th in the batting order in this game, which would be a downgrade from his 73% rate of hitting in the top-half of the batting order this season.

Michael Massey pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (38.2% — 96th percentile) but may find it hard to clear the league’s deepest RF fences today.

Michael Massey has been cold lately, with his seasonal exit velocity of 88.2-mph dropping to 84.7-mph over the last week.

Kauffman Stadium has the 2nd-largest outfield among all major league parks — generally bad for home runs.

Hitting from the same side that Seth Lugo throws from, Connor Wong will be in a tough position in today’s game.

Playing on the road generally diminishes hitter metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which should be the case for Connor Wong in today’s game.

Over the past week, Connor Wong’s Barrel% has experienced a negative regression, plummeting from his seasonal rate of 5% down to 0%.

Considering Brayan Bello’s large platoon split, Salvador Perez will be at a massive disadvantage hitting from the same side of the plate in today’s game.

Salvador Perez pulls a lot of his flyballs (36.3% — 93rd percentile) and has the misfortune of hitting them in the direction of MLB’s 4th-deepest LF fences in today’s matchup.

In the past 14 days, Salvador Perez’s exit velocity on flyballs has fallen from his seasonal figure of 94.5 mph to 92.3 mph.

Jarren Duran has a 95th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (38.9%) and will have to hit them out towards the league’s 4th-deepest LF fences in today’s matchup.

Jarren Duran will be at a disadvantage playing on the road today.

In the last 7 days, Jarren Duran’s Barrel% has experienced a negative regression, plummeting from his seasonal rate of 9.5% down to 0%.

Jarren Duran’s average exit velocity has decreased recently; his 91-mph seasonal EV has decreased to 82.7-mph in the last 7 days.

Placing in the 18th percentile, Vinnie Pasquantino sits with a .260 BABIP this year.

Rafael Devers has a 78th percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (34%) and has the misfortune of hitting them towards baseball’s 4th-deepest LF fences today.

Playing on the road generally lessens batter stats in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which ought to be the case for Rafael Devers in today’s matchup.

Rafael Devers has had positive variance on his side thus far when it comes to with his wOBA this year; his .406 rate is a fair amount higher than his .362 Expected wOBA, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s interpretation of Statcast data.

Based on Statcast data, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)’s version of Expected wOBA (.317) suggests that Wilyer Abreu has had positive variance on his side this year with his .363 actual wOBA.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT)’s assessment, Brayan Bello’s overall pitching talent ranks in the 82nd percentile among all starters in the majors right now.

In his previous start, Brayan Bello was in good form and allowed 2 ER.

Brayan Bello’s four-seamer usage has decreased by 18.1% from last year to this one (20.7% to 2.6%) .

Kauffman Stadium grades out as the #25 ballpark in MLB for RHB home runs, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT).

Because of Brayan Bello’s large platoon split, Hunter Renfroe will be at a big disadvantage hitting from the same side of the dish today.

Hunter Renfroe pulls a high percentage of his flyballs (40% — 98th percentile) and will have to hit them out towards MLB’s 4th-deepest LF fences today.

Hunter Renfroe has negatively regressed with his Barrel% recently; his 6.5% seasonal rate has fallen off to 0% in the past week.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects David Hamilton in the 22nd percentile when it comes to his overall offensive ability.

David Hamilton is projected to hit 8th in the lineup in this game.

This year, David Hamilton has been pulled from the game early in 17% of his appearances when starting against northpaw.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Hunter Renfroe in the 5th percentile when estimating his BABIP talent.

This year, Masataka Yoshida has been pulled from the game early in 12% of his appearances when starting against northpaw.

Playing on the road typically reduces hitter metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which should be the case for Masataka Yoshida today.

Dominic Smith is projected to bat 6th in the batting order in this matchup.

Dominic Smith has been lifted for a pinch-hitter 17% of the time when starting against a righty hurler this year.

Today, Dominic Smith is at a disadvantage facing the league’s 4th-deepest CF center field fences given that he hits his flyballs towards center field at a 38.3% rate (82nd percentile).

Playing on the road typically reduces batter metrics in all categories due to the lack of home field advantage, which should be the case for Dominic Smith in today’s game.

According to the leading projection system (THE BAT)’s evaluation, Seth Lugo’s overall pitching talent is in the 76th percentile out of all starting pitchers in the majors right now.

The underlying talent of the Boston Red Sox projected lineup today (.314 projected wOBA per the leading projection system, THE BAT X) figures to be considerably weaker than their .331 wOBA this year.

The Boston Red Sox have been the 2nd-luckiest offense in Major League Baseball this year, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X), and are likely to hit worse the rest of the season, Sporting a .178 Isolated Power (ISO) this year, Masataka Yoshida is positioned in the 18th percentile.

Despite posting a .341 wOBA this year, the leading projection system (THE BAT X) believes Salvador Perez has been very fortunate given the .021 deviation between that figure and his estimated true talent wOBA of .320.

The #3 park in the league for suppressing strikeouts, via the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Kauffman Stadium.