Chicago @ San Diego props

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Home field advantage generally boosts batter stats in all categories, and Martin Maldonado will hold that advantage in today's game. Martin Maldonado's 17.9° launch angle (a reliable standard to measure a batter's ability to lift the ball for power) is among the highest in Major League Baseball: 83rd percentile.

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks.

The #5 field in MLB for suppressing batting average to RHB, according to the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park. Petco Park's elevation is near sea-level, one of the lowest in the majors, which generally leads to less offense. In terms of temperature and humidity, the weather report calls for the 4th-best pitching conditions of all games on the slate today. Jameson Taillon will hold the platoon advantage against Fernando Tatis Jr. in today's matchup. The Chicago Cubs outfield defense grades out as the 2nd-strongest out of all the teams in action today.

The #5 ballpark in the game for suppressing batting average to left-handed batters, per the leading projection system (THE BAT), is Petco Park. Petco Park's elevation is near sea-level, one of the lowest in the majors, which generally leads to less offense. In terms of temperature and humidity, the weather report calls for the 4th-best pitching conditions of all games on the slate today. The Chicago Cubs outfield defense grades out as the 2nd-strongest out of all the teams in action today. Luis Arraez has been cold recently, compiling a 0% Barrel% (an advanced metric to measure power) over the past two weeks.

Kyle Tucker projects as the 9th-best batter in baseball, per the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Kyle Tucker is projected to hit 2nd on the lineup card in today's game. Kyle Tucker will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Dylan Cease in today's matchup. Kyle Tucker has made substantial improvements with his Barrel%, improving his 12.9% rate last season to 21.4% this year. Kyle Tucker has seen a significant improvement in his exit velocity lately; just compare his 94.3-mph average in the past 7 days to his seasonal 91.6-mph mark.

When it comes to his overall offensive ability, Dansby Swanson ranks in the 89th percentile according to the leading projections (THE BAT X). Dansby Swanson is projected to bat 5th in the batting order in today's game. Dansby Swanson hits a lot of his flyballs to center field (39.8% — 96th percentile) and is fortunate to face MLB's 2nd-shallowest CF fences in today's matchup. Dansby Swanson has made substantial gains with his Barrel% of late, improving his 11.9% seasonal rate to 21.4% over the last week. There has been a significant improvement in Dansby Swanson's launch angle from last year's 10.2° to 23.2° this year.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Seiya Suzuki in the 96th percentile when estimating his overall offensive skill. Seiya Suzuki is penciled in 3rd on the lineup card today. Seiya Suzuki hits many of his flyballs to center field (42.8% — 100th percentile) and is fortunate to face the game's 2nd-shallowest CF fences today. Seiya Suzuki has made substantial gains with his Barrel%, improving his 11.5% rate last season to 16.7% this season. Seiya Suzuki's ability to hit the ball at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better from last season to this one, increasing from 43.5% to 55.6%.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Michael Busch in the 83rd percentile when it comes to his overall offensive talent. Michael Busch is projected to bat 4th on the lineup card in this matchup. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Hitting from the opposite that Dylan Cease throws from, Michael Busch will have an advantage today. Compared to last year, Michael Busch has improved his ability to hit the ball at a launch angle ideal for base hits, increasing his percentage of balls hit between -4° and 26° from 38.9% to 56.8% this season.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Xander Bogaerts in the 94th percentile when it comes to his batting average skill. Xander Bogaerts is penciled in 5th in the batting order in this game. Xander Bogaerts hits a high percentage of his flyballs to center field (38.6% — 81st percentile) and sets up very well considering he'll be hitting out towards the league's 2nd-shallowest CF fences in today's game. Xander Bogaerts will possess the home field advantage in today's game, which ought to boost all of his stats. Xander Bogaerts has seen a big increase in his exit velocity this season; just compare his 91.8-mph average to last season's 88.1-mph figure.

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Elias Diaz will hold the home field advantage in today's game, which should improve all of his stats. Over the last 7 days, Elias Diaz's maximum exit velocity (a good indicator of recent form and raw power) has been 111.4-mph, which qualifies as one of the hardest-hit balls in MLB.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Ian Happ in the 89th percentile as it relates to his overall offensive talent. Ian Happ is projected to hit 1st in the batting order in today's game. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. The switch-hitting Ian Happ will hold the platoon advantage while batting from from his good side (0) today against Dylan Cease. Ian Happ's ability to hit the ball at a HR-maximizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased of late, rising from 19% on the season to 35.3% in the last week.

Justin Turner is projected to hit 3rd on the lineup card today. Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Justin Turner's ability to hit the ball at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) has increased from last year to this one, going from 19.1% to 36%. In the past week's worth of games, Justin Turner's 66.7% rate of hitting balls at a BABIP-optimizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 40.9%. When it comes to plate discipline, Justin Turner's talent is quite strong, putting up a 1.52 K/BB rate since the start of last season while placing in in the 91st percentile.

Hitting from the opposite that Jameson Taillon throws from, Jason Heyward will have an edge today. The Chicago Cubs have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Jason Heyward has a strong chance of never losing the platoon advantage against the 'pen all game. Home field advantage generally improves hitter stats across the board, and Jason Heyward will hold that advantage in today's matchup. Jason Heyward's launch angle this year (25.5°) is a significant increase over his 10.2° angle last year. Based on Statcast metrics, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average (.231) implies that Jason Heyward has been unlucky since the start of last season with his .210 actual batting average.

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Extreme flyball bats like Brandon Lockridge usually hit better against extreme groundball pitchers like Jameson Taillon. Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics across the board, and Brandon Lockridge will hold that advantage today.

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Pete Crow-Armstrong will receive the benefit of the platoon advantage against Dylan Cease in today's game. Pete Crow-Armstrong has been unlucky in regards to his batting average since the start of last season; his .235 mark is deflated compared to his .256 Expected Batting Average, based on the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s interpretation of Statcast data.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Manny Machado in the 93rd percentile when estimating his overall offensive talent. Manny Machado is projected to bat 3rd in the lineup in this matchup. Manny Machado hits many of his flyballs to center field (39.8% — 96th percentile) and is fortunate to face the league's 2nd-shallowest CF fences today. Manny Machado will possess the home field advantage today, which ought to bolster all of his stats. Manny Machado has been hot of late, notching a 94.4-mph average exit velocity over the last week.

Nico Hoerner's batting average ability is projected to be in the 96th percentile according to the leading projection system (THE BAT X). Over the past week, Nico Hoerner's exit velocity on flyballs has seen a big rise, from 88.1-mph over the course of the season to 91.9-mph recently. In the last week's worth of games, Nico Hoerner's 33.3% rate of hitting balls at a HR-optimizing launch angle (between 23° and 34°) shows big improvement over his seasonal rate of 11.1%. Nico Hoerner's ability to hit the ball at a base hit-maximizing launch angle (between -4° and 26°) has gotten better from last year to this one, rising from 44.5% to 56.7%. Based on Statcast metrics, the leading projection system (THE BAT X)'s version of Expected Batting Average (.287) provides evidence that Nico Hoerner has had bad variance on his side since the start of last season with his .275 actual batting average.

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Miguel Amaya's launch angle this year (21.1°) is considerably higher than his 10.9° figure last season.

The leading projection system (THE BAT X) projects Jose Iglesias in the 93rd percentile as it relates to his batting average ability. Extreme flyball hitters like Jose Iglesias are generally more successful against extreme groundball pitchers like Jameson Taillon. Home field advantage typically improves hitter metrics in all categories, and Jose Iglesias will hold that advantage in today's game. Jose Iglesias has posted a .355 wOBA (the best measure of overall offense) since the start of last season, grading out in the 89th percentile. Sporting a .330 batting average since the start of last season, Jose Iglesias is ranked in the 100th percentile.

Gavin Sheets has primarily hit in the back-half of the batting order this year (60% of the time), but he is projected to bat 4th in the batting order in this game. Gavin Sheets will have the handedness advantage against Jameson Taillon today. Gavin Sheets will probably have an advantage against every reliever for the whole game, since the bullpen of the Chicago Cubs has just 1 same-handed RP. Home field advantage generally boosts hitter metrics in all categories, and Gavin Sheets will hold that advantage today. Gavin Sheets has seen a significant improvement in his exit velocity this year; just compare his 89.9-mph average to last year's 87.8-mph EV.

Petco Park has the shallowest centerfield dimensions among all parks. Tyler Wade will have the benefit of the platoon advantage against Jameson Taillon in today's matchup. The Chicago Cubs have just 1 same-handed RP in their bullpen, so Tyler Wade can likely count on never facing a bullpen mismatch all game. Extreme groundball hitters like Tyler Wade are generally more successful against extreme flyball pitchers like Jameson Taillon. Home field advantage generally bolsters hitter stats across the board, and Tyler Wade will hold that advantage in today's game.