Best MLB Singles Matchups — Tuesday, September 8, 2026
Top singles spot: Elly De La Cruz
Elly De La Cruz (CIN) tops the board at 100, facing LHP Tarik Skubal. The righty is lining singles at .175 1B/PA against lefties this year — and .348 over the last two weeks, an excellent bat that turns into a single in about 19% of his trips. And Tarik Skubal has been getting picked apart by lefties lately — .275 singles 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 just .000 in 3 career PA against Tarik Skubal, but that's a tiny sample and the matchup says regression. It all sets up in a neutral park.
The rest of the top of the board
- Brett Bateman (TOR) (100) vs RHP Jack Perkins: an elite bat at .221 into an arm around league average against the same side (.143).
- Roman Anthony (BOS) (81) vs LHP Reid Detmers: a strong bat at .164 into an arm getting picked apart by the same side (.318).
- Freddie Freeman (LAD) (80) vs LHP Nick Lodolo: a strong bat at .162 into an arm getting picked apart by the same side (.300).
- Nathan Lukes (TOR) (78) vs RHP Jack Perkins: an elite bat at .194 into an arm around league average against the same side (.143), hot bat.
- Andrew Vaughn (MIL) (78) vs LHP David Peterson: an excellent bat at .179 into an arm getting picked apart by the same side (.222).
- Bryan Torres (STL) (76) vs RHP Landen Roupp: an excellent bat at .184 into an arm getting picked apart by the same side (.174).
- Steven Kwan (CLE) (76) vs RHP Brandon Young: an elite bat at .194 into an arm tough to string hits off the same side (.000).
Platoon edges to target
- Elly De La Cruz (CIN) — righty bat vs LHP, .175 against lefties this year.
- Brett Bateman (TOR) — lefty bat vs RHP, .250 against righties this year.
- Nathan Lukes (TOR) — lefty bat vs RHP, .207 against righties this year.
- Andrew Vaughn (MIL) — righty bat vs LHP, .179 against lefties this year.
- Bryan Torres (STL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .188 against righties this year.
Hot bats and bounce-back spots
Swinging hot bats: Elly De La Cruz (CIN), Nathan Lukes (TOR), Gleyber Torres (DET), Mike Trout (LAA), Iván Herrera (STL), and TJ Rumfield (COL). Cold but due to bounce back: Ty France (SD), Vaughn Grissom (LAA), Lawrence Butler (ATH), Konnor Griffin (PIT), and Blaze Alexander (BAL).
How it played out
4 of the top 10 singles matchups landed at least one single. Top play Elly De La Cruz finished with 0 singles. 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 singles matchups
Each score (0–100) starts with the hitter's singles 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.