MLB Player Props & Bets: Monday (8/31)
There are 12 Major League Baseball games today; five have a first pitch of 8:10 p.m. ET or later. The Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals meet at 6:45 p.m. ET in the nation’s capital, and that is the only nationally televised game on FS1. Below are our top MLB player props for Monday, August 31st.
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Monday's Top MLB Player Props
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Elmer Rodriguez Over 4.5 Strikeouts (+100)
Whenever the Angels are on the schedule, we try to play the opposing pitcher and bet on the over on his strikeout prop.
The Angels have struck out 1,291 times across 137 games, or 9.42 times per game. That’s the third-worst mark in the Majors. With their free-swinging ways, we’ll take a shot on Elmer Rodriguez to record at least five punchouts. He had six strikeouts across six innings in a quality start and no-decision against the Houston Astros last time out on Wednesday in his return to the Majors.
Michael King Over 5.5 Strikeouts (-130) & Over 17.5 Outs Recorded (-130)
While we can’t take advantage of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have a scheduled off day, the Cincinnati Reds are on the schedule. The Reds rank second in the Majors with 1,304 strikeouts across 137 games (9.52 strikeouts per game). That’s just a tick behind the Pirates, who strike out 9.54 times per game.
Michael King had seven strikeouts against the aforementioned Pirates last time out on August 25th in a 1-0 home loss. We’re going to double up on King. He has lasted at least six innings in four consecutive outings, including 20+ outs recorded in each of the past two. King has pitched at least six innings (18 outs recorded) in six of his past seven starts and eight of the past 10.
King is an innings eater. In addition to the solid strikeouts he is likely to rack up in Cincinnati, he should go deep into the game, too. He has a very favorable matchup against righty Brady Singer (5-12, 4.72 ERA, 1.42 WHIP), so he might have a little longer of a leash - not that he’ll need it.
The Padres’ offense is going to be angry after getting swept by Tampa Bay, looking to take out their frustrations on a very giving Singer. Go very aggressively on King to go at least six innings for the fifth straight start.
Lawrence Butler Over 1.5 Hits + Runs + RBIs (+140)
Looking at the hitter props for our fourth and final play, let’s take a look at Lawrence Butler.
On the surface, it looks like a scary matchup against Texas Rangers righty Jacob deGrom (9-9, 4.21 ERA, 1.18 WHIP). But it’s a tough matchup in name only, since he’s been leaking oil lately. The Rangers hurler has allowed 16 runs in 20 innings in five starts in August, posting a 2-3 mark and 7.20 ERA.
Butler has faced deGrom 10 times and has two hits. One of those hits was a solo home run. However, there isn’t much to glean there, as the sample size is just too small. While Butler is hitting just .229 overall, he has been red-hot lately, hitting safely in eight in a row, while picking up at least one RBI in four in a row and seven of the past eight games.
Butler is hitting a robust .296 (29-for-98) with three doubles, six homers and 17 RBIs in August. While he strikes out a lot, whiffing 26 times in the month, that doesn’t bother us. We just need two combined hits + runs +RBIs.