Chicago @ Miami Picks & Props

Built just 6 feet above sea level, LoanDepot Park has one of the lowest elevations among all major league stadiums, which usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to worse offense. In terms of temperature and humidity, the weather report predicts the 5th-most favorable pitching conditions on the schedule today. As a switch-hitter who bats worse from the 0 side of the dish, Xavier Edwards will be less advantaged while batting from his bad side against Kyle Hendricks today. In today's game, Xavier Edwards is at a disadvantage facing the league's 8th-deepest LF fences given that he hits his flyballs to the opposite field at a 35.9% rate (88th percentile). Xavier Edwards has been lucky this year, notching a .378 wOBA despite the leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimating his true talent level to be .302 — a .076 gap.

Nico Hoerner is projected to hit 6th in the lineup in this game. Built just 6 feet above sea level, LoanDepot Park has one of the lowest elevations among all major league stadiums, which usually leads (as a rule of thumb) to worse offense. In terms of temperature and humidity, the weather report predicts the 5th-most favorable pitching conditions on the schedule today. Batting from the same side that Max Meyer throws from, Nico Hoerner will be at a disadvantage in today's matchup. Nico Hoerner has a 93rd percentile opposite-field rate on his flyballs (37.4%) and has the misfortune of hitting them towards MLB's 4th-deepest RF fences in today's matchup.

Isaac Paredes is penciled in 5th in the lineup in this matchup. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Last season, Isaac Paredes had an average launch angle of 18° on his highest exit velocity balls, while this year it has significantly increased to 21.5°. Posting a 1.41 K/BB rate this year, Isaac Paredes has demonstrated strong plate discipline, ranking in the 94th percentile.

When assessing his overall offensive skill, Dansby Swanson ranks in the 86th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Dansby Swanson hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39.2% — 93rd percentile) and is a great match for the park considering he'll be hitting towards MLB's 6th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Over the last week, Dansby Swanson's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 8.8% up to 16.7%. Dansby Swanson's average launch angle on his hardest-contacted balls recently (23.4° over the past 14 days) is a considerable increase over his 14.7° seasonal figure.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Seiya Suzuki in the 96th percentile when it comes to his overall offensive ability. Seiya Suzuki is projected to bat 3rd on the lineup card today. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Seiya Suzuki hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (42.3% — 100th percentile) and will have a big advantage facing baseball's 6th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Seiya Suzuki's launch angle of late (24.2° in the last two weeks) is considerably higher than his 16.6° seasonal mark.

When assessing his overall offensive talent, Jake Burger ranks in the 91st percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Jake Burger is penciled in 2nd on the lineup card in this matchup. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Jake Burger will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which should improve all of his stats. Jake Burger has made substantial improvements with his Barrel% in recent games, bettering his 13.3% seasonal rate to 21.9% in the past two weeks' worth of games.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Derek Hill in the 93rd percentile when assessing his BABIP skill. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Home field advantage generally bolsters batter stats across the board, and Derek Hill will hold that advantage in today's game. Derek Hill's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has improved in recent games, increasing from 49.3% on the season to 60% over the past two weeks.

LoanDepot Park profiles as the #3 ballpark in the majors for lefty BABIP, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Kyle Stowers will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Kyle Hendricks today. Kyle Stowers may have an edge against every reliever for the whole game, since the bullpen of the Chicago Cubs has just 1 same-handed RP. Kyle Stowers hits many of his flyballs to center field (38.9% — 90th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting out towards MLB's 6th-shallowest CF fences today. Kyle Stowers will have the benefit of the home field advantage in today's game, which should boost all of his stats.

When estimating his overall offensive skill, Michael Busch ranks in the 75th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Michael Busch is projected to hit 2nd on the lineup card in today's game. LoanDepot Park profiles as the #3 ballpark in the majors for lefty BABIP, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Michael Busch will have the handedness advantage over Max Meyer in today's game. Over the past week, Michael Busch's Barrel% has experienced a surge, jumping from his seasonal rate of 12.7% up to 18.2%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Otto Lopez in the 91st percentile when estimating his batting average talent. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Otto Lopez hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (39.5% — 96th percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting out towards MLB's 6th-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Otto Lopez will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which should bolster all of his stats. Otto Lopez has seen a big improvement in his exit velocity of late; just compare his 92-mph average in the past week to his seasonal 87.9-mph mark.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jesus Sanchez in the 84th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Jesus Sanchez is projected to bat 3rd on the lineup card in today's game. LoanDepot Park profiles as the #3 ballpark in the majors for lefty BABIP, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Jesus Sanchez will hold the platoon advantage against Kyle Hendricks in today's game. Jesus Sanchez is apt to have an edge against every reliever for the duration of the game, since the bullpen of the Chicago Cubs has just 1 same-handed RP.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Connor Norby in the 88th percentile when estimating his BABIP skill. Connor Norby is projected to hit 5th on the lineup card in this matchup, which would be an upgrade from his 83% rate of hitting in the bottom-half of the lineup this year. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Connor Norby will benefit from the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to bolster all of his stats. Connor Norby has seen a significant gain in his exit velocity on flyballs in recent games; just compare his 100.5-mph average over the last week to his seasonal mark of 94.4-mph.

Jonah Bride is penciled in 4th in the lineup in today's game. The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. Home field advantage generally improves hitter stats across the board, and Jonah Bride will hold that advantage today. In terms of plate discipline, Jonah Bride's talent is quite impressive, sporting a 1.96 K/BB rate since the start of last season while grading out in in the 84th percentile.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ian Happ in the 92nd percentile as it relates to his overall offensive ability. Ian Happ is penciled in 1st on the lineup card in this matchup. LoanDepot Park profiles as the #3 ballpark in the majors for lefty BABIP, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). As a switch-hitter who is best from the 0 side of the plate, Ian Happ will hold the platoon advantage while batting from from his good side against Max Meyer in today's matchup. Ian Happ has made substantial strides with his Barrel% in recent games, improving his 12.9% seasonal rate to 21.7% over the past 14 days.

The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. In the majors, LoanDepot Park's centerfield dimensions are the 5th-shallowest. Miguel Amaya has made sizeable improvements with his Barrel% of late, bettering his 4.2% seasonal rate to 16.7% in the past week's worth of games. Over the past two weeks, Miguel Amaya's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 91.4-mph over the course of the season to 94.7-mph of late. Miguel Amaya's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better recently, rising from 43% on the season to 56.5% in the past two weeks.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Cody Bellinger in the 83rd percentile when assessing his overall offensive talent. Cody Bellinger is projected to hit 4th in the batting order today. LoanDepot Park profiles as the #3 ballpark in the majors for lefty BABIP, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Batting from the opposite that Max Meyer throws from, Cody Bellinger will have an edge today. In the last two weeks' worth of games, Cody Bellinger's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 90.9-mph over the course of the season to 93.2-mph recently.

The #3 field in the league for boosting base hits to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is LoanDepot Park. In the majors, LoanDepot Park's centerfield dimensions are the 5th-shallowest. Nick Fortes will possess the home field advantage in today's matchup, which ought to boost all of his stats. Nick Fortes's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased in recent games, rising from 10.8% on the season to 36.4% in the past week's worth of games. The leading projection system (THE BAT X) estimates Nick Fortes's true offensive skill to be a .271, implying that he has experienced some negative variance this year given the .029 deviation between that mark and his actual .242 wOBA.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Pete Crow-Armstrong in the 81st percentile as it relates to his BABIP skill. LoanDepot Park profiles as the #3 ballpark in the majors for lefty BABIP, per the leading projection system (THE BAT). Batting from the opposite that Max Meyer throws from, Pete Crow-Armstrong will have an advantage today. Pete Crow-Armstrong's launch angle in recent games (27.5° over the last two weeks) is considerably better than his 16.8° seasonal mark. When it comes to his batting average, Pete Crow-Armstrong has experienced some negative variance this year. His .210 rate falls considerably below the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Statcast-based Expected Batting Average (xBA) at .260.