A matchup between the 2 most strikeout heavy teams in the league. The Braves lead the league with 487 K, and the DBacks are chasing them in second with 471. I like the Diamondback to close the gap a bit today against Kyle Wright.
Kyle Wright is enjoying a terrific season so far. The righty has arguably been the Braves best pitcher this season with his 2.68 ERA and 4-3 record. He was terrific in April and slightly regressed a bit in May, and I like him to get off to a fast start in June. He has been a consistent source of strikeouts so far this season as he ranks 12th in the league with 61. He has had 6 or more in 6 of his 9 starts so far this year, including 2/3 on the road. His advanced K stats support his strong start as well. He is in the 80th percentile in K%, 76th percentile in whiff%, and 53rd percentile in chase rate. He has a 5 pitch arsenal but mostly relies on curveball, fastball, and sinker. In unique fashion, his curve is his go to pitch as he throws it 31.6% of the time. His curve should be a good friend of ours today, as it has a 37.1% whiff rate.
As I mentioned, Arizona is second in the league in strikeouts. They have the 3rd most over the last 15 days, only 3 behind the Phillies. For the season they have a 25.6% K rate vs righties. They do not swing at first pitches very often, third least in the league which could play a factor as Kyle throws a first pitch strike 65.6% of the time. He should benefit from getting ahead of the DBacks hitters. Arizona is bottom 6 in chase contact %, so they should struggle to make contact with Kyle’s curveball. I like him to rack up 6+ K.
