Best MLB Hits Matchups — Saturday, July 25, 2026
Top hits spot: Jacob Wilson
Jacob Wilson (ATH) tops the board at 100, facing RHP Mike Paredes. The righty is hitting .285 H/PA against righties this year — and .370 over the last two weeks, an excellent bat that turns into a hit in about 28% of his trips. And Mike Paredes has been thin against righties lately. One catch: the bullpen behind him has been stingy to that side late. He's hitting in a spot worth about 4.7 trips, so the volume's there. No real history against Mike Paredes. It all sets up in a neutral park, weather helping.
The rest of the top of the board
- Jake Mangum (PIT) (96) vs LHP Shota Imanaga: a strong bat at .263 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.302).
- Nick Gonzales (PIT) (93) vs LHP Shota Imanaga: a strong bat at .253 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.302), hot bat.
- Jeremy Peña (HOU) (91) vs RHP Sean Burke: an excellent bat at .283 into an arm tough on the same side (.136), hot bat.
- Yordan Alvarez (HOU) (88) vs RHP Sean Burke: an elite bat at .302 into an arm tough on the same side (.120), hot bat.
- Elly De La Cruz (CIN) (87) vs RHP Andre Pallante: a strong bat at .253 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.308).
- Tyler Soderstrom (ATH) (87) vs RHP Mike Paredes: a solid bat at .245 into an arm with little track record against the same side, hot bat.
- Esmerlyn Valdez (PIT) (86) vs LHP Shota Imanaga: a strong bat at .259 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.302), due to bounce back.
Pitchers getting tattooed today
- RHP Bryce Elder has been vulnerable to righties — .275 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Pete Alonso (BAL), Dylan Beavers (BAL), and Christian Encarnacion-Strand (BAL).
- LHP Tim Mayza has been vulnerable to lefties — .261 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Paul Goldschmidt (NYY), Amed Rosario (NYY), and Ben Rice (NYY).
Platoon edges to target
- Jake Mangum (PIT) — righty bat vs LHP, .278 against lefties this year.
- Nick Gonzales (PIT) — righty bat vs LHP, .250 against lefties this year.
- Yordan Alvarez (HOU) — lefty bat vs RHP, .284 against righties this year.
- Elly De La Cruz (CIN) — lefty bat vs RHP, .230 against righties this year.
- Tyler Soderstrom (ATH) — lefty bat vs RHP, .223 against righties this year.
Hot bats and bounce-back spots
Swinging hot bats: Nick Gonzales (PIT), Jeremy Peña (HOU), Yordan Alvarez (HOU), Tyler Soderstrom (ATH), Jake McCarthy (COL), and Joc Pederson (TEX). Cold but due to bounce back: Esmerlyn Valdez (PIT), Bryan Reynolds (PIT), Nick Kurtz (ATH), Curtis Mead (WSH), and Josh Bell (MIN).
How it played out
8 of the top 10 hits matchups landed at least one hit. Top play Jacob Wilson finished with 0 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.
What the hits board is
The Hits board projects the chance a hitter records at least one hit, matchup-adjusted. One statistical model scores every matchup on the slate the same way — a star and a backup judged on the matchup in front of them, not their name — and every number is graded against the real box score once the games go final.
How the model gets its number
It isn't a gut call or a name game. The projection is built from a few things:
- The hitter's contact rate vs this pitcher's hand.
- The starter's hit-suppression and the park.
- Recent form, without over-reacting to a hot or cold week.
Those pieces combine into one number, and the model re-tunes itself weekly against how its past calls actually landed.
Is there a betting edge here?
Hits is an efficient market — the book prices a 1+ hit line about as well as we do, so we publish the WizLine as graded transparency, not a play. Our projection is sharp (the ranking is well-calibrated); the book just isn't leaving room on it.
How to use it
Use it to see who the model likes to square one up, and how that squares with the price — but there's no systematic edge here, so treat it as research, not a lean.
Everything here is a research signal from the model, graded in public — not betting advice, and no outcome is guaranteed.
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