Best MLB Hits Matchups — Sunday, September 6, 2026
Top hits spot: Bryan Torres
Bryan Torres (STL) tops the board at 100, facing RHP Tanner Gordon. The lefty is hitting .246 H/PA against righties this year — and .400 over the last two weeks, a solid bat that turns into a hit in about 25% of his trips. And Tanner Gordon has been tough on righties lately — .200 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 Tanner Gordon, but that's a tiny sample and the matchup says regression. It all sets up in a hitter's park.
The rest of the top of the board
- Iván Herrera (STL) (97) vs RHP Tanner Gordon: a solid bat at .229 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.381), hitter's park.
- Alec Burleson (STL) (96) vs RHP Tanner Gordon: a strong bat at .262 into an arm tough on the same side (.200), hitter's park.
- Jake McCarthy (COL) (93) vs RHP Kyle Leahy: a solid bat at .239 into an arm mostly holding up against the same side (.210), hitter's park.
- TJ Rumfield (COL) (87) vs RHP Kyle Leahy: a strong bat at .251 into an arm mostly holding up against the same side (.210), hitter's park, hot bat.
- Jordan Walker (STL) (83) vs RHP Tanner Gordon: a solid bat at .234 into an arm getting tattooed by the same side (.381), hitter's park.
- Hunter Goodman (COL) (76) vs RHP Kyle Leahy: a solid bat at .241 into an arm tough on the same side (.200), hitter's park.
- Leo Bernal (STL) (76) vs RHP Tanner Gordon: a solid bat at .245 into an arm tough on the same side (.200), hitter's park, hot bat.
Pitchers getting tattooed today
- RHP Aaron Nola has been vulnerable to righties — .272 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL), Drake Baldwin (ATL), and Michael Harris II (ATL).
- RHP Tanner Gordon has been vulnerable to righties — .267 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Bryan Torres (STL), Iván Herrera (STL), and Alec Burleson (STL).
- LHP Eduardo Rodriguez has been giving up plenty to lefties — .256 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Yordan Alvarez (HOU), Jeremy Peña (HOU), and Isaac Paredes (HOU).
- RHP Kyle Leahy has been giving up plenty to righties — .255 hits per batter faced. Bats to target: Jake McCarthy (COL), TJ Rumfield (COL), and Hunter Goodman (COL).
Platoon edges to target
- Bryan Torres (STL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .246 against righties this year.
- Alec Burleson (STL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .279 against righties this year.
- Jake McCarthy (COL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .261 against righties this year.
- TJ Rumfield (COL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .257 against righties this year.
- Troy Johnston (COL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .272 against righties this year.
Best parks to hit in today
Coors Field is playing as a real hitter's park today (+9% hits park). Top bat there: Bryan Torres (STL) at 100.
Hot bats and bounce-back spots
Swinging hot bats: TJ Rumfield (COL), Leo Bernal (STL), Thomas Saggese (STL), Joshua Báez (STL), Gleyber Torres (DET), and Isaac Paredes (HOU). Cold but due to bounce back: Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD), Freddie Freeman (LAD), Roman Anthony (BOS), Hao-Yu Lee (DET), and Luis Lara (MIL).
Lineup watch
270 of today's hitters are still on projected lineups, drawn from each team's last game. Batting order drives the score, so these flip the moment official lineups post — usually about two hours before first pitch. Anyone who doesn't make the official card gets flagged "Not starting" and drops to the bottom.
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 our number 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