Best MLB Total Bases Matchups — Tuesday, October 6, 2026
Top total bases spot: Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani (LAD) tops the board at 100, facing LHP Chris Sale. The lefty is racking up bases at .466 TB/PA against lefties this year — and .333 over the last two weeks, a solid bat that turns into a total base in about 39% of his trips. And Chris Sale has been thin against lefties lately. The bullpen behind him hasn't been any better to that side, so there's no relief late. He's hitting in a spot worth about 4.5 trips, so the volume's there. He's just .188 in 16 career PA against Chris Sale, 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
- Jackson Chourio (MIL) (88) vs RHP Nick Pivetta: a league-average bat at .368 into an arm getting squared up by the same side (.571), hot bat.
- Mookie Betts (LAD) (83) vs LHP Chris Sale: a solid bat at .381 into an arm vulnerable to the same side (.381).
- Freddie Freeman (LAD) (75) vs LHP Chris Sale: a league-average bat at .363 into an arm with little track record against the same side, due to bounce back.
- Drake Baldwin (ATL) (74) vs RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto: a solid bat at .396 into an arm tough on the same side (.091).
- Kyle Tucker (LAD) (73) vs LHP Chris Sale: a league-average bat at .357 into an arm with little track record against the same side.
- Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD) (70) vs RHP Dustin May: a solid bat at .409 into an arm tough on the same side (.250).
- Brice Turang (MIL) (70) vs RHP Nick Pivetta: a strong bat at .426 into an arm tough on the same side (.077), hot bat.
Arms giving up extra bases today
- RHP Nick Pivetta has been giving up bases to righties — .371 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Jackson Chourio (MIL), Brice Turang (MIL), and William Contreras (MIL).
- RHP Dustin May has been mostly containing righties — .349 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD), Dustin Harris (SD), and Jackson Merrill (SD).
- LHP Chris Sale has been mostly containing lefties — .315 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Shohei Ohtani (LAD), Mookie Betts (LAD), and Freddie Freeman (LAD).
- RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto has been tough on righties — .309 total bases per batter faced. Bats to target: Drake Baldwin (ATL), Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL), and Michael Harris II (ATL).
Platoon edges to target
- Mookie Betts (LAD) — righty bat vs LHP, .400 against lefties this year.
- Drake Baldwin (ATL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .445 against righties this year.
- Brice Turang (MIL) — lefty bat vs RHP, .432 against righties this year.
- Dustin Harris (SD) — lefty bat vs RHP, .364 against righties this year.
- Will Smith (LAD) — righty bat vs LHP, .229 against lefties this year.
Lineup watch
36 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 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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