Chicago White Sox at Houston Astros

2026-09-29, , Daikin Park. Hagen Smith (L) against AJ Blubaugh (R). Every number derives from the public Statcast store and the engine's published boards. Charts are code-drawn. Probabilities, not picks. Statcast through 2026-09-28.

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.

AJ Blubaugh (RHP)

1640 pitches, K% 24% vs LHB (214 BF) / 23% vs RHB (187 BF)

Opener usage: in a typical outing he does not get through the order once (64 appearances, median 6 batters, deepest 2×). Prep the second and third look against the bullpen, not this arsenal — see Bullpens.

64 apps · median 6 BF · reaches the order 1.0× (max 2) · exits at 24 pitches (IQR 16–32, 64 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%5923%
BB%2510%
CSW%1925%
Whiff%6625%
Chase%3328%
xwOBA vs44.320
Hard-hit%5837%
GB%1435%
1st-pitch strike%7364%

Arsenal, shape and results

Pitch # vL%vR% MPHIVBHB RPMWhiffCSW Chase 2K use 2K zone xwOBA RV/100
4-seam84352%51%95.8+17-11226720%25%24%50%50%.342-0.5
sweeper36518%27%84.7+3+12262128%30%34%21%35%.288-1.9
changeup34228%13%85.9+3-16235532%21%32%27%21%.289+1.1
cutter761%9%88.9+8+4239143%24%25%2%·.283+0.5

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

4-seam
sweeper
changeup

Movement

4-seam: +17 IVB, -11 HBsweeper: +3 IVB, +12 HBchangeup: +3 IVB, -16 HBcutter: +8 IVB, +4 HBhorizontal break (in), catcher viewinduced vertical break (in)

How to attack

  • Hunt the 4-seam early: 52% of his first pitches, only 20% whiffs, 58% in-zone on 0-0.
  • Vs lefties he leans changeup (28% of pitches to that side).
  • Lay off the cutter below the zone: 43% whiffs, only 25% of them are strikes.

Hagen Smith (LHP) limited 2026 sample

469 pitches, K% 37% overall (110 BF; split withheld, short side only 39 BF)

Opener usage: in a typical outing he does not get through the order once (18 appearances, median 6 batters, deepest 2×). Prep the second and third look against the bullpen, not this arsenal — see Bullpens.

18 apps · median 6 BF · reaches the order 1.0× (max 2) · 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%9937%
BB%315%
CSW%10035%
Whiff%9934%
Chase%3629%
xwOBA vs98.243
Hard-hit%8134%
GB%5643%
1st-pitch strike%455%
recent starts, K (n=1) last start 09/10, 19 days ago
309/10
PIT

Arsenal, shape and results

Pitch # vL%vR% MPHIVBHB RPMWhiffCSW Chase 2K use 2K zone xwOBA RV/100
4-seam22649%48%93.8+14+8240227%34%24%41%44%.301-1.9
slider14337%27%83.1-4-5241242%34%39%43%27%.177-3.4
cutter8913%22%88.4+6-3246535%39%23%9%·.311-2.7

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 and movement (4 charts)
4-seam
slider
cutter

Movement

4-seam: +14 IVB, +8 HBslider: -4 IVB, -5 HBcutter: +6 IVB, -3 HBhorizontal break (in), catcher viewinduced vertical break (in)

Attack plan vs Houston Astros

  • Slider: top breaking whiffs are Trammell (49%), Peña (36%).
  • Careful with Paredes: 87% contact, 16% K rate vs LHP; pitch to contact at the edges.

White Sox bats vs AJ Blubaugh

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. Lineup projected from recent starts; the posted order replaces it once teams announce. 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
Sam Antonacci (L)444.36413%21%88%36%··≈ n169
Tommy Pham (R)6·······≈ n31
Munetaka Murakami (L)384.35136%23%60%55%··≈ n227
Miguel Vargas (R)496.36718%21%81%40%··≈ n213
Randal Grichuk (R)102.25523%37%71%39%··≈ n138
Kyle Teel (L)105.34035%30%68%49%··≈ n135
Andrew Benintendi (L)421.31922%33%75%47%··≈ n155
Braden Montgomery (S)262.35116%25%75%43%··≈ n191
Colson Montgomery (L)442.28938%33%65%44%··≈ n227

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. Lineup projected from recent starts; the posted order replaces it once teams announce. 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
Jeremy Peña (R)11317%36%43%.32839%72%41% n113··≈ n252
Yordan Alvarez (L)1849%28%24%.42033%82%38% n184··≈ n207
Isaac Paredes (R)1596%18%26%.33132%87%19% n159··≈ n233
Jose Altuve (R)13816%30%17%.30734%79%38% n138··≈ n208
Yainer Diaz (R)9620%33%18%.27243%78%···≈ n168
Christian Walker (R)14519%36%36%.32028%73%31% n146··≈ n203
Nelson Velázquez (R)8135%30%56%.34234%62%···≈ n42
Cam Smith (R)14716%28%55%.31930%73%29% n147··≈ n212
Taylor Trammell (L)4315%49%·.18828%66%···≈ n137

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.

No batter probabilities are published for this game yet — those publish once the lineup posts.

Jeremy Peña (R)

FB17%
BRK36%
OFF43%

vs LHP 0.328 xwOBA, K 23% (113 PA)

Yordan Alvarez (L)

FB9%
BRK28%
OFF24%

vs LHP 0.420 xwOBA, K 15% (184 PA)

Isaac Paredes (R)

FB6%
BRK18%
OFF26%

vs LHP 0.331 xwOBA, K 16% (159 PA)

Jose Altuve (R)

FB16%
BRK30%
OFF17%

vs LHP 0.307 xwOBA, K 20% (138 PA)

Yainer Diaz (R)

FB20%
BRK33%
OFF18%

vs LHP 0.272 xwOBA, K 19% (96 PA)

Christian Walker (R)

FB19%
BRK36%
OFF36%

vs LHP 0.320 xwOBA, K 20% (145 PA)

Nelson Velázquez (R)

FB35%
BRK30%
OFF56%

vs LHP 0.342 xwOBA, K 32% (81 PA)

Cam Smith (R)

FB16%
BRK28%
OFF55%

vs LHP 0.319 xwOBA, K 24% (147 PA)

Taylor Trammell (L)

FB15%
BRK49%
OFF·

vs LHP 0.188 xwOBA, K 28% (43 PA)

Matchups: CWS hitters vs AJ Blubaugh

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 up and away — and he puts 6% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.401 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.272 league average in that spot. (21 balls in play.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

0 for 2 lifetime. At 2 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

2. Tommy Pham

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

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

3. Munetaka Murakami

Edge: pitcherHe throws the four-seam off the plate on 24% of his pitches to this side. The batter swings and misses 48% of the time there, against 31% for a typical hitter — +18 points. (39 swings.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

1 for 2 lifetime. At 2 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

3. Miguel Vargas

Edge: pitcherHe throws the four-seam middle and away on 4% of his pitches to this side. The batter swings and misses 21% of the time there, against 16% for a typical hitter — +5 points. (32 swings.)

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes middle-middle — and he puts 6% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.457 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.393 league average in that spot. (36 balls in play.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

0 for 2 lifetime. At 2 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

3. Randal Grichuk

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes down and away — and he puts 7% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.381 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.261 league average in that spot. (10 balls in play.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

0 for 1 lifetime. At 1 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

3. Kyle Teel

Edge: pitcherHe throws the four-seam off the plate on 24% of his pitches to this side. The batter swings and misses 35% of the time there, against 31% for a typical hitter — +4 points. (20 swings.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

4. Andrew Benintendi

Edge: pitcherHe throws the four-seam up-middle on 5% of his pitches to this side. The batter swings and misses 23% of the time there, against 18% for a typical hitter — +6 points. (34 swings.)

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes up-middle — and he puts 7% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.414 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.329 league average in that spot. (24 balls in play.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

0 for 1 lifetime. At 1 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

6. Braden Montgomery

Edge: pitcherHe throws the four-seam up-middle on 5% of his pitches to this side. The batter swings and misses 24% of the time there, against 18% for a typical hitter — +6 points. (16 swings.)

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes down-middle — and he puts 8% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.414 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.356 league average in that spot. (28 balls in play.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

1 for 2 lifetime. At 2 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

6. Colson Montgomery

Edge: pitcherHe throws the four-seam off the plate on 24% of his pitches to this side. The batter swings and misses 47% of the time there, against 31% for a typical hitter — +16 points. (101 swings.)

Edge: batterWhen the ball goes down-middle — and he puts 8% of his pitches there — the batter does real damage: 0.458 expected value per ball in play, against a 0.356 league average in that spot. (19 balls in play.)

No published probability for this batter tonight, so the notes above are observations, not predictions.

0 for 2 lifetime. At 2 plate appearances this is trivia, not evidence — it is shown because people ask for it, and it is not used anywhere in the analysis above.

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 22 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: Kyle Teel — runners went 49-for-62 against him (21% 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
Jeremy Peña (R)29.2 ft/s5.5% (20/361)holds-3 SS
Yordan Alvarez (L)24.9 ft/s1.0% (3/383)holds·
Isaac Paredes (R)25.0 ft/s0.5% (1/421)holds+0 3B
Jose Altuve (R)27.5 ft/s3.7% (15/415)holds-5 2B
Yainer Diaz (R)25.8 ft/s1.0% (2/301)holds·
Christian Walker (R)25.9 ft/s0.8% (2/385)holds+2 1B
Nelson Velázquez (R)27.6 ft/s2.3% (0/27)holds·
Cam Smith (R)29.2 ft/s6.4% (20/307)occasional+5 RF
Taylor Trammell (L)27.0 ft/s6.4% (8/122)occasional·

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 22 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 118-for-146 against him (19% 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
Sam Antonacci (L)28.2 ft/s8.1% (19/228)occasional-5 LF
Tommy Pham (R)·2.0% (3/184)holds·
Munetaka Murakami (L)27.1 ft/s1.8% (3/209)holds+0 1B
Miguel Vargas (R)28.3 ft/s5.1% (22/431)holds-2 3B
Randal Grichuk (R)27.3 ft/s1.4% (1/132)holds·
Kyle Teel (L)27.0 ft/s1.5% (2/191)holds·
Andrew Benintendi (L)26.6 ft/s0.7% (1/280)holds·
Braden Montgomery (S)28.5 ft/s1.5% (1/124)holds·
Colson Montgomery (L)26.6 ft/s0.8% (1/243)holds+6 SS

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
Reliever09/2509/2609/27 games since 30-day K%Whiff%xwOBA Top pitches
Trevor Richards (R)··46today heavy300p/12g21%20%.3184-seam 91 (61%) · changeup 79 (26%)
Sean Newcomb (L)·2217today B2B255p/9g23%21%.3224-seam 96 (43%) · slurve 84 (26%)
Grant Taylor (R)17··2231p/9g32%27%.2704-seam 98 (30%) · curveball 84 (27%)
Jordan Hicks (R)·18·1166p/9g30%26%.2704-seam 99 (36%) · sinker 100 (35%)
Bryan Hudson (L)1315·1139p/11g21%21%.2874-seam 91 (65%) · sweeper 78 (35%)
Noah Schultz (L)·42·1 heavy115p/4g21%20%.363cutter 90 (33%) · sinker 96 (27%)
Tyler Davis (R)·3·194p/7g21%20%.2934-seam 96 (64%) · slider 89 (30%)
Luis Castillo (R)···593p/3g19%21%.3484-seam 94 (59%) · slider 84 (20%)
Houston Astros bullpen 8 arms
Reliever09/2509/2609/27 games since 30-day K%Whiff%xwOBA Top pitches
Bryan Abreu (R)···3191p/14g30%31%.314slider 87 (42%) · 4-seam 96 (41%)
Bennett Sousa (L)5··2190p/12g23%30%.314slider 85 (59%) · 4-seam 94 (30%)
Josh Hader (L)···4 heavy167p/10g33%32%.215sinker 96 (68%) · slider 85 (32%)
Enyel De Los Santos (R)···8167p/8g22%26%.2914-seam 95 (45%) · slider 86 (29%)
Bryan King (L)··23today161p/9g18%16%.3194-seam 92 (42%) · sinker 91 (35%)
Tatsuya Imai (R)··10today155p/5g29%30%.330slider 86 (48%) · 4-seam 95 (47%)
Miguel Ullola (R)··18today124p/5g26%23%.2454-seam 94 (58%) · slider 86 (31%)
701121 (R)34·16today114p/5g20%21%.2594-seam 93 (58%) · sweeper 82 (28%)