Beat the Streak is back for the 2022 season -- and the $5.6 million prize is still up for grabs.
The idea is simple -- pick one player (or two) every day who you think will get a hit. The objective -- surpass Joe DiMaggio's record-long 56-game hitting streak -- is a bit more challenging.
But we are here to help with that. We'll provide BTS leaderboard updates and daily insights on favorable matchups in this space, as well as every weekday on the new “Beat the Streak Daily: Inside the Hits” podcast.
Let's take a closer at the action from yesterday and today:
LEADERBOARD DATA
Longest active streak: 26 (cfurst)
Longest season streak: 26
Longest streak all-time: 51
Most popular picks (yesterday)
1. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers (21.2%) *
2. Michael Brantley, Astros (15.0%) *
3. Trea Turner, Dodgers (14.8%) *
4. Nick Castellanos, Phillies (9.5%) *
5. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays (4.0%) *
* - Recorded a hit
Most popular picks (this season)
1. Trea Turner, Dodgers (10.4%)
2. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers (6.6%)
3. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays (4.4%)
4. Starling Marte, Mets (4.0%)
5. Nick Castellanos, Phillies (3.9%)
HITTERS TO TARGET TODAY
DJ LeMahieu, Yankees (vs. Orioles)
One, LeMahieu is red-hot -- he's batting .390/.444/.537 over his current 11-game hitting streak -- and it's not a fluke. His 58.5% hard-hit rate ranks seventh in the Majors, and his .354 expected batting average, based on his quality of contact, ranks ninth. Two, he has a solid matchup against Orioles right-hander Jordan Lyles, who he's a .313 hitter against in 17 career plate appearances.
Manny Machado, Padres (at Reds)
Machado and the Padres teed off on Reds starter Reiver Sanmartin six days ago, and now they get to face him for a second straight time. Machado gets the favorable righty-vs.-lefty matchup (he's a .288/.357/.500 career hitter against lefties, including 10-for-20 this season), he went 2-for-3 with a home run vs. Sanmartin in their first meeting, he's batting .339/.423/.565 with a 52.1% hard-hit rate this season, and Sanmartin has surrendered 14 hits in 12 2/3 innings this year and 26 hits in 24 1/3 innings in his first two big league seasons.
Cody Bellinger, Dodgers (at D-backs)
Before Monday, the National League Player of the Week batted .304 and slugging .870 with three homers and six extra-base hits over his last six games, and he gets a sweet lefty-vs.-righty matchup against a starter he's crushed, Zach Davies. Bellinger has faced Davies 17 times in his career and has a .333/.412/.533 slash line, a 945 OPS and two home runs against him.
OFFENSE(S) TO AVOID
Athletics (at Giants -- Carlos Rodón)
The A's don't have a ton of potent bats to begin with, and they're facing one of the most overpowering starters in baseball in Rodón. The left-hander has a 1.06 ERA through three starts and 29 strikeouts in 17 innings. Rodón is both striking out the most batters per nine innings in the Major Leagues (15.4) and allowing the fewest hits per nine innings (4.2). He has one of the highest swing-and-miss rates in the league on both his fastball (33.7%) and his slider (55.6%). Not a good matchup for Oakland.
Red Sox (at Blue Jays -- Kevin Gausman)
The Red Sox have a deep lineup, but this might be a day to stay away. They're going into Toronto to face a tough pitcher who just shut them down in their home park. Gausman pitched eight innings of one-run, eight-strikeout baseball against the Sox at Fenway in his last start, and he's just an unfavorable matchup for the Boston offense. With his nasty splitter, Gausman is one of the best pitchers in baseball at getting hitters to chase (34.5% chase rate induced on out-of-zone pitches since the start of last season, including an MLB-high 57.3% mark this year), and the Red Sox are chasing more than any team this season (33.4%).
NOTABLE BATTER VS. PITCHER MATCHUPS
Favorable
Bo Bichette (Blue Jays): 8-for-17 (.471), 2 HR, 4 XBH, 4 K vs. Nick Pivetta
Kris Bryant (Rockies): 9-for-15 (.600), 2 2B, 2 K vs. Zach Eflin
Joey Votto (Reds): 8-for-21 (.381), 2 HR, 5 XBH, 3 K vs. Joe Musgrove
Unfavorable
Bryan Reynolds (Pirates): 1-for-11 (.091), 9 K vs Brandon Woodruff
Salvador Perez (Royals): 6-for-37 (.162), 11 K vs. Dallas Keuchel
Trevor Story (Red Sox): 3-for-19 (.158), 9 K vs. Kevin Gausman