Best MLB Hits Matchups — Tuesday, August 25, 2026
Top hits spot: Alec Burleson
Alec Burleson (STL) tops the board at 100, facing RHP Chris Bassitt. The lefty is hitting .289 H/PA against righties this year — and .306 over the last two weeks, an excellent bat that turns into a hit in about 27% of his trips. And Chris Bassitt has been getting tattooed by righties lately — .324 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 Chris Bassitt too — .600 across 5 career trips. It all sets up in a neutral park, weather helping.
The rest of the top of the board
- Luke Keaschall (MIN) (100) vs LHP Gage Jump: a solid bat at .232 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.290), hot bat.
- Trea Turner (PHI) (98) vs RHP George Kirby: a strong bat at .253 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.409), due to bounce back.
- Luis Arraez (PHI) (96) vs RHP George Kirby: an excellent bat at .291 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.364).
- Byron Buxton (MIN) (95) vs LHP Gage Jump: a solid bat at .247 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.290).
- Jung Hoo Lee (SF) (93) vs RHP Brady Singer: a strong bat at .264 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.313).
- Henry Bolte (ATH) (87) vs RHP Taj Bradley: a solid bat at .235 into an arm tough on the same side (.167).
- Drew Gilbert (SF) (87) vs RHP Brady Singer: a solid bat at .233 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.313).
Pitchers getting tattooed today
- RHP Casey Legumina has been vulnerable to righties — .271 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Hao-Yu Lee (DET), Gleyber Torres (DET), and Dillon Dingler (DET).
- RHP Chris Bassitt has been vulnerable to righties — .270 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Alec Burleson (STL), JJ Wetherholt (STL), and Iván Herrera (STL).
- RHP Aaron Nola has been vulnerable to righties — .264 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Julio Rodríguez (SEA), Randy Arozarena (SEA), and Dominic Canzone (SEA).
- RHP George Kirby has been giving up plenty to righties — .258 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Trea Turner (PHI), Luis Arraez (PHI), and Bryce Harper (PHI).
Platoon edges to target
- Alec Burleson (STL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .289 against righties this year.
- Luke Keaschall (MIN) — righty bat vs LHP, .242 against lefties this year.
- Luis Arraez (PHI) — lefty bat vs RHP, .302 against righties this year.
- Byron Buxton (MIN) — righty bat vs LHP, .232 against lefties this year.
- Jung Hoo Lee (SF) — lefty bat vs RHP, .280 against righties this year.
Hot bats and bounce-back spots
Swinging hot bats: Alec Burleson (STL), Luke Keaschall (MIN), Zach Neto (LAA), Sal Stewart (CIN), Andrew Vaughn (MIL), and Nick Sogard (BOS). Cold but due to bounce back: Trea Turner (PHI), Gabriel Moreno (AZ), Shohei Ohtani (LAD), Nate Furman (SF), and Cole Carrigg (COL).
How it played out
7 of the top 10 hits matchups landed at least one hit. Top play Alec Burleson finished with 1 hit. 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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