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 look at the action from yesterday and today:

LEADERBOARD DATA

Longest active streak: 33 (Floyd1)

Longest season streak: 45 (kiyoshilotus26)

Longest streak all-time: 51

Most popular picks (yesterday)
1. Alex Verdugo, Red Sox (12.8%)*
2. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers (11.3%)
3. Austin Riley, Braves (9.9%)*
4. Rafael Devers, Red Sox (7.8%)*
5. Trea Turner, Dodgers (6.9%)*
* - Recorded a hit

Most popular picks (this season)
1. Trea Turner, Dodgers (9.7%)
2. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers (6.3%)
3. Manny Machado, Padres (4.6%)
4. J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (4.5%)
5. Paul Goldschmidt, Cardinals (4.4%)

HITTERS TO TARGET TODAY

Xander Bogaerts, Red Sox (vs. Rangers)
Bogaerts has been on an absolute tear over the past week, turning in seven multihit efforts in his past eight games -- and Friday night's matchup is as good as they come. Bogaerts will be squaring off with Texas newcomer Dallas Keuchel, who has an 8.84 ERA over 13 starts between the White Sox, D-backs and Rangers this season. He made his Rangers debut on Saturday, when he was tagged for seven runs on 11 hits over 5 1/3 innings against the Tigers. Keuchel is allowing opponents to hit a scorching .349 against him this season. That's resulted in 87 hits in just 56 innings of work. Given those struggles, it wouldn't be a bad idea to pair Bogaerts with one of his Boston teammates and double down against Keuchel tonight.

José Ramírez, Guardians (vs. Mariners)
If it's not broken, don't fix it ... right? After rolling with Ramírez on Thursday -- and being rewarded with a first-inning hit -- we're going back to the well again today. Not only has he been swinging a good bat of late, but Ramírez has had some big knocks against Seattle starter Luis Castillo. Ramírez is 5-for-15 against Castillo, with all five of those hits going for extra bases (three home runs and two triples). Of course, that's a tiny sample, but Ramírez's overall body of work is the main reason for this selection. Those head-to-head numbers are just a bonus.

Julio Rodríguez, Mariners (at Guardians)
Sticking with that same matchup, Seattle's rookie sensation finds himself in a great spot tonight against Guardians starter Zach Plesac. Though Rodríguez has cooled off a bit recently (he's hitting just .147 over his past nine games), he did crush his 22nd homer of the season yesterday against the Tigers. Now, he takes on Plesac, who has a 5.62 ERA over his past eight starts -- and just served up three homers to the Mariners on Saturday in his last outing.

OFFENSE(S) TO AVOID

Braves (vs. Marlins -- Sandy Alcantara)
Though Alcantara had a rare poor outing on Aug. 21 against the Dodgers (six runs on 10 hits in 3 2/3 innings), he bounced back immediately by tossing a complete game against those same Dodgers just six days later -- one in which he struck out 10 and allowed just one run. With his most recent gem, Alcantara has a 2.13 ERA this season while holding opponents to just a .205 average. He's also 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA in two starts against the Braves (one earned run in 17 innings).

Cubs (at Cardinals -- Jordan Montgomery)
Montgomery is 4-0 with a 1.76 ERA in five starts since joining the Cardinals -- and that includes tossing a one-hit shutout against these same Cubs on Aug. 22.

NOTABLE BATTER VS. PITCHER MATCHUPS

Favorable

Freddie Freeman (Dodgers): 7-for-19 (.368), 2 HR vs. Yu Darvish

José Ramírez (Guardians): 5-for-15 (.333), 3 HR, 2 3B vs. Luis Castillo

Ketel Marte (D-backs): 7-for-14 (.500), 2 HR vs. Eric Lauer

Donovan Solano (Reds): 7-for-15 (.467), 2 HR vs. Kyle Freeland

Unfavorable

Austin Riley (Braves): 2-for-18 (.111), 9 K vs. Sandy Alcantara

Paul Goldschmidt (Cardinals): 2-for-12 (.167), 3 K vs. Adrian Sampson

Shohei Ohtani (Angels): 3-for-16 (.188), 6 K vs. Lance McCullers Jr.

Mike Trout (Angels): 4-for-24 (.167), 2 HR, 10 K vs. McCullers

Mookie Betts (Dodgers): 5-for-23 (.217), 6 K vs. Darvish