Houston Astros at Chicago White Sox

2026-07-26, 2:10 PM ET, Rate Field. Erick Fedde (R) against Ronel Blanco (R). Every number derives from the public Statcast store and the engine's published boards. Charts are code-drawn. Probabilities, not picks. Statcast through 2026-07-25.

What decides tonight

Every number below is a probability this engine published before first pitch and grades that night, or a plain count. No scouting verdicts are ranked here — those live in the panels and carry their own sample sizes.

Ronel Blanco (RHP) limited 2026 sample

86 pitches, K% 42% overall (19 BF; split withheld, short side only 4 BF)

1 apps · median 19 BF · reaches the order 3.0× (max 3) · exit pitch count withheld, only 1 start(s). Fade is measured inside each start on nights that reached 85 pitches, so it is not flattered by the short outings.

League percentiles, starter pool

K%10042%
BB%216%
CSW%6328%
Whiff%9331%
Chase%10047%
xwOBA vs2.388
Hard-hit%·
GB%·
1st-pitch strike%·
published K forecast: E[K] 5.8
recent starts, K (n=1)
807/20
MIA

Arsenal, shape and results

Pitch # vL%vR% MPHIVBHB RPMWhiffCSW Chase 2K use 2K zone xwOBA RV/100
changeup2633%15%84.7+6-14151844%38%59%26%···
curveball2630%31%80.5-2+9222955%38%35%37%···
4-seam2429%23%94.0+19-823287%12%·23%···
slider108%31%86.8+8+12163·10%·14%···

RV/100 is run value per 100 pitches from the pitcher's side, so negative is good (a curveball at −1.3 costs the pitcher runs even if it misses bats — a real tension worth reading, not a contradiction). Whiff, chase and xwOBA are computed on this pitcher's own pitches this season; low-usage pitches carry small samples.

Locations, catcher view

changeup
curveball
4-seam

Movement

changeup: +6 IVB, -14 HBcurveball: -2 IVB, +9 HB4-seam: +19 IVB, -8 HBslider: +8 IVB, +1 HBhorizontal break (in), catcher viewinduced vertical break (in)

How to attack

  • Lay off the curveball below the zone: 55% whiffs, only 35% of them are strikes.
  • Hunt the 4-seam: 28% usage, only 7% whiffs, 46% in-zone (all counts).
  • Vs righties he leans slider (31% of pitches to that side).

Erick Fedde (RHP)

1598 pitches, K% 16% vs LHB (224 BF) / 17% vs RHB (182 BF)

20 apps · median 21 BF · reaches the order 3.0× (max 3) · exits at 80 pitches (IQR 75–89, 10 starts) · fastball -0.7 mph late (4 deep starts). Fade is measured inside each start on nights that reached 85 pitches, so it is not flattered by the short outings.

League percentiles, starter pool

K%1116%
BB%498%
CSW%1825%
Whiff%1118%
Chase%424%
xwOBA vs32.331
Hard-hit%4439%
GB%3639%
1st-pitch strike%8566%
published K forecast: E[K] 4.1
recent starts, K (n=5)
205/12
KC
205/17
CHC
206/03
MIN
306/30
BAL
607/20
TEX

Arsenal, shape and results

Pitch # vL%vR% MPHIVBHB RPMWhiffCSW Chase 2K use 2K zone xwOBA RV/100
sweeper59031%45%81.9+1+16252021%28%32%43%39%.298-0.9
sinker47025%35%94.0+8-9206013%27%16%25%44%.345+0.1
cutter29921%16%90.7+7+3214315%25%21%13%44%.396+1.4
changeup21021%2%88.7+3-10184325%16%25%14%21%.301+3.3

RV/100 is run value per 100 pitches from the pitcher's side, so negative is good (a curveball at −1.3 costs the pitcher runs even if it misses bats — a real tension worth reading, not a contradiction). Whiff, chase and xwOBA are computed on this pitcher's own pitches this season; low-usage pitches carry small samples.

Locations, catcher view

sweeper
sinker
cutter

Movement

sweeper: +1 IVB, +16 HBsinker: +8 IVB, -9 HBcutter: +7 IVB, +3 HBchangeup: +3 IVB, -10 HBhorizontal break (in), catcher viewinduced vertical break (in)

Attack plan vs Houston Astros

  • Sweeper: top breaking whiffs are Trammell (55%), Dezenzo (42%).
  • Changeup: top offspeed whiffs are Smith (44%), Peña (40%).
  • Careful with Wade Jr.: 84% contact, 21% K rate vs RHP; pitch to contact at the edges.

White Sox bats vs Ronel Blanco

Season quality vs tonight's starter hand, percentile-colored vs league: red elite, paper average, blue poor. P columns are the engine's published board numbers for this game. Batting order as posted. 30d contact is the last-30-day contact rate minus the season rate; an arrow is drawn only when the move clears two standard errors of its own noise, and n is the recent swing count.

#BatterPAxwOBAK%Chase%Contact%HH%P(1+ hit)P(1+ HR)30d contact
1Sam Antonacci (L)266.38314%22%87%39%69%12%n177
2Munetaka Murakami (L)206.39831%22%60%58%61%15%n79
3Miguel Vargas (R)310.37118%22%81%40%69%16%n183
4Braden Montgomery (S)110.32316%29%80%43%65%8%n195
5Andrew Benintendi (L)277.33022%30%75%48%57%11%n137
6Tristan Peters (L)270.32118%35%81%35%61%12%n154
7Chase Meidroth (R)300.29425%27%81%34%62%10%n161
8Luisangel Acuña (R)98.28822%33%75%34%53%7%n39
9Drew Romo (S)103.23526%34%69%25%49%7%n45

Houston Astros bats, where our staff attacks

Whiff by pitch group vs our starter's hand. Blue cells are the attack zones. P columns are the published board numbers. Batting order as posted. 30d contact is the last-30-day contact rate minus the season rate; an arrow is drawn only when the move clears two standard errors of its own noise, and n is the recent swing count.

#BatterPAFB whiffBRK whiffOFF whiffxwOBAChase%Contact%1st-pitch swingP(1+ hit)P(1+ HR)30d contact
1Jeremy Peña (R)19612%38%40%.34734%75%47% n19763%15%n129
2Yordan Alvarez (L)33916%21%16%.50026%83%32% n33968%23%n165
3Isaac Paredes (R)32311%26%21%.31626%84%16% n32370%14%n206
4Jose Altuve (R)26320%25%35%.28036%77%43% n26365%13%n179
5LaMonte Wade Jr. (L)5612%12%·.27621%84%·59%10%n88
6Yainer Diaz (R)14116%20%19%.32341%82%42% n14166%13%n109
7Taylor Trammell (L)11430%55%29%.30129%64%34% n11455%11%n95
8Cam Smith (R)28217%42%44%.33929%73%32% n28368%16%n164
9Zach Dezenzo (R)4726%42%·.23332%67%·51%9%n47

Houston Astros hitters, one card each

One card per hitter: the published probabilities this engine grades tonight, his whiff shape by pitch group, and his season against this starter's hand with the sample stated. Times-through-order and leverage splits are deliberately absent — at a median 45 plate appearances the third-time-through number carries a standard error roughly three times the effect it would be claiming.

1

Jeremy Peña (R)

P(1+ hit) 63% · P(1+ HR) 15%

FB12%
BRK38%
OFF40%

vs RHP 0.347 xwOBA, K 16% (196 PA)

2

Yordan Alvarez (L)

P(1+ hit) 68% · P(1+ HR) 23%

FB16%
BRK21%
OFF16%

vs RHP 0.500 xwOBA, K 18% (339 PA)

3

Isaac Paredes (R)

P(1+ hit) 70% · P(1+ HR) 14%

FB11%
BRK26%
OFF21%

vs RHP 0.316 xwOBA, K 14% (323 PA)

4

Jose Altuve (R)

P(1+ hit) 65% · P(1+ HR) 13%

FB20%
BRK25%
OFF35%

vs RHP 0.280 xwOBA, K 21% (263 PA)

5

LaMonte Wade Jr. (L)

P(1+ hit) 59% · P(1+ HR) 10%

FB12%
BRK12%
OFF·

vs RHP 0.276 xwOBA, K 21% (56 PA)

6

Yainer Diaz (R)

P(1+ hit) 66% · P(1+ HR) 13%

FB16%
BRK20%
OFF19%

vs RHP 0.323 xwOBA, K 14% (141 PA)

7

Taylor Trammell (L)

P(1+ hit) 55% · P(1+ HR) 11%

FB30%
BRK55%
OFF29%

vs RHP 0.301 xwOBA, K 35% (114 PA)

8

Cam Smith (R)

P(1+ hit) 68% · P(1+ HR) 16%

FB17%
BRK42%
OFF44%

vs RHP 0.339 xwOBA, K 24% (282 PA)

9

Zach Dezenzo (R)

P(1+ hit) 51% · P(1+ HR) 9%

FB26%
BRK42%
OFF·

vs RHP 0.233 xwOBA, K 43% (47 PA)

Matchups: CWS hitters vs Ronel Blanco

Where this starter's actual usage meets each hitter's measured holes and damage, on the same map. An edge is only reported where the pitcher genuinely goes — a hole against a pitch he does not throw is not a matchup — and only where the rate is measurably worse than league for a typical hitter in that same spot. Every line carries its sample size. Batter-versus-pitcher history is shown as trivia and is not used in any of it: the samples that actually occur are far too small to support a conclusion, and most public matchup content is built on them anyway.

1. Sam Antonacci

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle and in — and he puts 7% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.481 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.335 league average in that spot. (20 balls in play.)

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 69% to get a hit and 12% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

2. Munetaka Murakami

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle-middle — and he puts 7% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.714 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.396 league average in that spot. (16 balls in play.)

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 61% to get a hit and 15% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

3. Miguel Vargas

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle-middle — and he puts 8% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.545 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.396 league average in that spot. (22 balls in play.)

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 69% to get a hit and 16% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

4. Braden Montgomery

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle-middle — and he puts 7% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.528 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.396 league average in that spot. (14 balls in play.)

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 65% to get a hit and 8% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

5. Andrew Benintendi

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle-middle — and he puts 7% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.473 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.396 league average in that spot. (27 balls in play.)

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 57% to get a hit and 11% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

6. Tristan Peters

Not enough of a track record in the spots this pitcher uses to say anything useful. No verdict rather than a guess.

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 61% to get a hit and 12% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

7. Chase Meidroth

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle and away — where this pitcher lives, 23% of his pitches — the batter does real damage: 0.378 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.309 league average in that spot. (19 balls in play.)

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 62% to get a hit and 10% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

8. Luisangel Acuña

Not enough of a track record in the spots this pitcher uses to say anything useful. No verdict rather than a guess.

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 53% to get a hit and 7% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

9. Drew Romo

Not enough of a track record in the spots this pitcher uses to say anything useful. No verdict rather than a guess.

Tonight's published, gradeable numbers for this batter: 49% to get a hit and 7% to homer. Those are what the record grades — the notes above only explain why.

Houston Astros: the running game and the defense

Sprint speed says who can run; attempt rate says who will. Rate is steals of second per time on first, shrunk toward the league’s 5.3% at 20 opportunities, with the raw count beside it. Verdict needs 15+ times on first. Sprint speed and Outs Above Average are Baseball Savant leaderboard metrics — measured from tracking data we do not have and did not compute.

Behind the plate: Drew Romo — runners went 25-for-33 against him (24% caught). That is mostly the pitcher: measured split-half reliability for a catcher’s own caught-stealing rate is +0.59, and the spread between catchers is smaller than the sampling noise. Read it as what happened, not as a rating.

#Batter Sprint Steal rate Threat OAA
1Jeremy Peña (R)29.2 ft/s5.0% (15/303)holds-3 SS
2Yordan Alvarez (L)24.9 ft/s1.4% (3/280)holds·
3Isaac Paredes (R)25.0 ft/s0.6% (1/334)holds+0 3B
4Jose Altuve (R)27.5 ft/s3.4% (11/339)holds-5 2B
5LaMonte Wade Jr. (L)25.6 ft/s1.6% (1/106)holds·
6Yainer Diaz (R)25.8 ft/s1.2% (2/240)holds·
7Taylor Trammell (L)27.0 ft/s8.0% (7/81)occasional·
8Cam Smith (R)29.2 ft/s6.4% (17/262)occasional+5 RF
9Zach Dezenzo (R)27.8 ft/s3.6% (2/64)holds·

Chicago White Sox: the running game and the defense

Sprint speed says who can run; attempt rate says who will. Rate is steals of second per time on first, shrunk toward the league’s 5.3% at 20 opportunities, with the raw count beside it. Verdict needs 15+ times on first. Sprint speed and Outs Above Average are Baseball Savant leaderboard metrics — measured from tracking data we do not have and did not compute.

Behind the plate: Yainer Diaz — runners went 98-for-120 against him (18% caught). That is mostly the pitcher: measured split-half reliability for a catcher’s own caught-stealing rate is +0.59, and the spread between catchers is smaller than the sampling noise. Read it as what happened, not as a rating.

#Batter Sprint Steal rate Threat OAA
1Sam Antonacci (L)28.2 ft/s9.6% (14/137)occasional-5 LF
2Munetaka Murakami (L)27.1 ft/s2.8% (3/123)holds+0 1B
3Miguel Vargas (R)28.3 ft/s4.4% (14/324)holds-2 3B
4Braden Montgomery (S)28.5 ft/s3.4% (1/41)holds·
5Andrew Benintendi (L)26.6 ft/s0.8% (1/236)holds·
6Tristan Peters (L)28.7 ft/s4.0% (4/106)holds+9 CF
7Chase Meidroth (R)27.2 ft/s3.5% (13/383)holds+4 2B
8Luisangel Acuña (R)29.8 ft/s16.5% (28/156)runner-3 SS
9Drew Romo (S)26.1 ft/s4.3% (1/28)holds·

Bullpens

Sorted by 30-day workload. Day cells show pitches on the three most recent league game dates; dark means heavy recent use. Season rates percentile-colored vs all pitchers with 150+ pitches.

White Sox bullpen 8 arms
Reliever07/2207/2407/25 games since 30-day K%Whiff%xwOBA Top pitches
Trevor Richards (R)·2433today B2B295p/12g25%23%.2934-seam 92 (60%) · changeup 80 (31%)
Tyler Schweitzer (L)··15today203p/5g11%21%.3424-seam 94 (43%) · slider 88 (35%)
Jordan Hicks (R)19··2163p/10g26%23%.277sinker 100 (39%) · sweeper 87 (37%)
Grant Taylor (R)28··2163p/8g35%27%.2394-seam 98 (40%) · curveball 83 (29%)
Sean Newcomb (L)···4152p/7g24%22%.3104-seam 95 (51%) · slurve 83 (29%)
Chris Murphy (L)·26·1137p/8g21%29%.3044-seam 97 (34%) · curveball 78 (30%)
Seranthony Domínguez (R)·19·1118p/8g28%28%.3564-seam 97 (42%) · sweeper 86 (33%)
Bryan Hudson (L)1226·1118p/7g23%22%.2984-seam 92 (58%) · sweeper 80 (38%)
Houston Astros bullpen 8 arms
Reliever07/2207/2407/25 games since 30-day K%Whiff%xwOBA Top pitches
AJ Blubaugh (R)·34·1275p/8g25%26%.3154-seam 96 (49%) · changeup 85 (24%)
Steven Okert (L)820·1203p/13g27%29%.254slider 81 (67%) · 4-seam 92 (30%)
Enyel De Los Santos (R)16··2200p/12g23%27%.2924-seam 95 (46%) · slider 87 (30%)
Bryan Abreu (R)141222today B2B180p/10g28%29%.339slider 87 (46%) · 4-seam 96 (42%)
Josh Hader (L)·1310today B2B173p/12g42%37%.177sinker 95 (61%) · slider 85 (39%)
Bryan King (L)···5153p/10g18%15%.3244-seam 92 (56%) · sweeper 81 (33%)
Nate Pearson (R)···11145p/6g19%22%.3364-seam 97 (34%) · slider 89 (23%)
Cristian Javier (R)···589p/3g17%26%.3894-seam 94 (56%) · sweeper 82 (27%)