Best MLB Hits Matchups — Thursday, April 23, 2026
Top hits spot: Mickey Moniak
Mickey Moniak (COL) tops the board at 100, facing RHP Matt Waldron. The lefty is hitting .316 H/PA against righties this year — and .317 over the last two weeks, an excellent bat that turns into a hit in about 27% of his trips. And Matt Waldron has been getting tattooed by righties lately — .667 hits per batter faced. One catch: the bullpen behind him has been stingy to that side late. He's hitting in a spot worth about 4.5 trips, so the volume's there. He's owned Matt Waldron too — .400 across 5 career trips. It all sets up in a hitter's park, though the weather fights it.
The rest of the top of the board
- Nico Hoerner (CHC) (98) vs LHP Cristopher Sánchez: an elite bat at .306 into an arm vulnerable to the same side (.289).
- Edouard Julien (COL) (86) vs RHP Matt Waldron: a solid bat at .249 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.667), hitter's park.
- Kevin McGonigle (DET) (84) vs RHP Brandon Sproat: an excellent bat at .276 into an arm vulnerable to the same side (.263), hot bat.
- Ramón Laureano (SD) (79) vs RHP Ryan Feltner: a solid bat at .238 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.318), hitter's park, due to bounce back.
- Drake Baldwin (ATL) (75) vs RHP Cade Cavalli: a strong bat at .264 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.421).
- Juan Soto (NYM) (75) vs RHP Joe Ryan: an excellent bat at .289 into an arm tough on the same side (.087), hot bat.
- Troy Johnston (COL) (74) vs RHP Matt Waldron: an excellent bat at .270 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.667), hitter's park.
Pitchers getting tattooed today
- RHP Matt Waldron has been getting tattooed by righties — .299 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Mickey Moniak (COL), Edouard Julien (COL), and Troy Johnston (COL).
- RHP Cade Cavalli has been vulnerable to righties — .290 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Drake Baldwin (ATL), Dominic Smith (ATL), and Matt Olson (ATL).
- RHP Christian Scott has been vulnerable to righties — .287 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Trevor Larnach (MIN), Byron Buxton (MIN), and Josh Bell (MIN).
- RHP Ryan Feltner has been vulnerable to righties — .266 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Ramón Laureano (SD), Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD), and Xander Bogaerts (SD).
Platoon edges to target
- Mickey Moniak (COL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .316 against righties this year.
- Nico Hoerner (CHC) — righty bat vs LHP, .359 against lefties this year.
- Edouard Julien (COL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .254 against righties this year.
- Kevin McGonigle (DET) — lefty bat vs RHP, .284 against righties this year.
- Drake Baldwin (ATL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .284 against righties this year.
Best parks to hit in today
Coors Field is playing as a real hitter's park today (+6% hits park). Top bat there: Mickey Moniak (COL) at 100.
Hot bats and bounce-back spots
Swinging hot bats: Mickey Moniak (COL), Kevin McGonigle (DET), Juan Soto (NYM), Munetaka Murakami (CWS), Dominic Smith (ATL), and Ian Happ (CHC). Cold but due to bounce back: Ramón Laureano (SD), José Tena (WSH), Ben Rice (NYY), Kyle Tucker (LAD), and Andy Pages (LAD).
How it played out
8 of the top 10 hits matchups landed at least one hit. Top play Mickey Moniak finished with 4 hits. We post the result next to every projection so you can grade the board yourself — and so the model gets re-tuned against what actually happened.
How to read these hits matchups
Each score (0–100) starts with the hitter's hits per plate appearance against the hand he's facing — weighted toward the last two weeks, then the season, then a two-year baseline. Then it layers in the bullpen, his spot in the order, and park and weather. Higher means more of it points his way. It's context, not a lock — a great spot still goes 0-for-4 sometimes, and a tough one runs into one. The edge is in stacking the odds, and since we grade every board, you can see how often the top of the list delivers.