Best MLB Hits Matchups — Thursday, July 30, 2026
Top hits spot: Tommy Edman
Tommy Edman (LAD) tops the board at 100, facing RHP Bryan Woo. The lefty is hitting .329 H/PA against righties this year — and .400 over the last two weeks, an excellent bat that turns into a hit in about 29% of his trips. And Bryan Woo has been vulnerable to righties lately — .281 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 4.7 trips, so the volume's there. He's just .000 in 2 career PA against Bryan Woo, but that's a tiny sample and the matchup says regression. It all sets up in a neutral park, weather helping.
The rest of the top of the board
- Drake Baldwin (ATL) (100) vs RHP Jake Irvin: an excellent bat at .286 into an arm with little track record against the same side, hot bat.
- Jacob Wilson (ATH) (96) vs RHP Sonny Gray: a strong bat at .260 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.412).
- Freddie Freeman (LAD) (93) vs RHP Bryan Woo: an excellent bat at .283 into an arm vulnerable to the same side (.281), hot bat.
- Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL) (92) vs RHP Jake Irvin: a solid bat at .241 into an arm with little track record against the same side, due to bounce back.
- Nick Kurtz (ATH) (92) vs RHP Sonny Gray: a solid bat at .242 into an arm giving up plenty to the same side (.250), due to bounce back.
- Anthony Seigler (BOS) (90) vs RHP Mason Barnett: a solid bat at .245 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.300), due to bounce back.
- Jake Mangum (PIT) (88) vs RHP Rhett Lowder: a strong bat at .256 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.385), hot bat.
Pitchers getting tattooed today
- LHP Robbie Ray has been vulnerable to lefties — .269 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Jackson Merrill (SD), Luis Rengifo (SD), and Ty France (SD).
- RHP Sonny Gray has been vulnerable to righties — .262 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Jacob Wilson (ATH), Nick Kurtz (ATH), and Tyler Soderstrom (ATH).
- RHP Rhett Lowder has been vulnerable to righties — .261 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Jake Mangum (PIT), Brandon Lowe (PIT), and Nick Gonzales (PIT).
Platoon edges to target
- Tommy Edman (LAD) — lefty bat vs RHP, .329 against righties this year.
- Drake Baldwin (ATL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .251 against righties this year.
- Freddie Freeman (LAD) — lefty bat vs RHP, .284 against righties this year.
- Nick Kurtz (ATH) — lefty bat vs RHP, .214 against righties this year.
- Anthony Seigler (BOS) — lefty bat vs RHP, .247 against righties this year.
Hot bats and bounce-back spots
Swinging hot bats: Drake Baldwin (ATL), Freddie Freeman (LAD), Jake Mangum (PIT), Luis Arraez (SF), Ryan Jeffers (MIN), and Miguel Vargas (CWS). Cold but due to bounce back: Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL), Nick Kurtz (ATH), Anthony Seigler (BOS), Tyler Soderstrom (ATH), and Michael Harris II (ATL).
How it played out
7 of the top 10 hits matchups landed at least one hit. Top play Tommy Edman 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.
Learn more: How the model works · The picks story · Today's plays