Best MLB Total Bases Matchups — Friday, September 18, 2026
Top total bases spot: Teoscar Hernández
Teoscar Hernández (LAD) tops the board at 100, facing LHP Cesar Perdomo. The righty is racking up bases at .453 TB/PA against lefties this year — and .667 over the last two weeks, a strong bat that turns into a total base in about 44% of his trips. And Cesar Perdomo has been thin against lefties lately. 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. No real history against Cesar Perdomo. It all sets up in a neutral park.
The rest of the top of the board
- Pete Crow-Armstrong (CHC) (100) vs RHP Chase Burns: an excellent bat at .530 into an arm tough on the same side (.067).
- Brice Turang (MIL) (100) vs LHP Cade Povich: a solid bat at .376 into an arm with little track record against the same side.
- Gabriel Moreno (AZ) (100) vs RHP Gerrit Cole: a strong bat at .474 into an arm getting squared up by the same side (.750), hot bat.
- Brett Bateman (TOR) (100) vs RHP Kumar Rocker: a strong bat at .443 into an arm getting squared up by the same side (.538).
- Cody Bellinger (NYY) (97) vs LHP Eduardo Rodriguez: a strong bat at .424 into an arm getting squared up by the same side (1.000).
- Mookie Betts (LAD) (95) vs LHP Cesar Perdomo: a solid bat at .370 into an arm with little track record against the same side.
- Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD) (94) vs RHP Tyler Phillips: a strong bat at .426 into an arm getting squared up by the same side (.600).
Arms giving up extra bases today
- LHP Cade Povich has been getting squared up by lefties — .468 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Brice Turang (MIL), Christian Yelich (MIL), and Jackson Chourio (MIL).
- RHP Gerrit Cole has been getting squared up by righties — .438 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Gabriel Moreno (AZ), Lars Nootbaar (AZ), and Ketel Marte (AZ).
- LHP Eduardo Rodriguez has been getting squared up by lefties — .422 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Cody Bellinger (NYY), Spencer Jones (NYY), and Ben Rice (NYY).
- RHP Grayson Rodriguez has been vulnerable to righties — .415 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Kody Clemens (MIN), Brooks Lee (MIN), and Josh Bell (MIN).
Platoon edges to target
- Teoscar Hernández (LAD) — righty bat vs LHP, .453 against lefties this year.
- Pete Crow-Armstrong (CHC) — lefty bat vs RHP, .525 against righties this year.
- Brett Bateman (TOR) — lefty bat vs RHP, .420 against righties this year.
- Kevin McGonigle (DET) — lefty bat vs RHP, .392 against righties this year.
- Lars Nootbaar (AZ) — lefty bat vs RHP, .352 against righties this year.
How it played out
6 of the top 10 total bases matchups landed at least one total base. Top play Teoscar Hernández finished with 2 total bases. 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 total bases matchups
Each score (0–100) starts with the hitter's total bases 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 total bases board is
The Total Bases board projects how many bases a hitter racks up vs the posted total-bases line. 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:
- His extra-base pop vs this arm.
- The park.
- Recent contact quality.
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?
Total bases grades right at break-even even when we tune it to the hilt — the book prices the marginal leans efficiently. Transparency board.
How to use it
See who the model projects for extra-base damage; no systematic edge to bet.
Everything here is a research signal from the model, graded in public — not betting advice, and no outcome is guaranteed.
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