MLB Player Props & Bets: Tuesday (6/9)
Last night, the Blue Jays' offense struggled against the Phillies. Below, I highlight why I don't anticipate the same difficulties against Phillies starter Zack Wheeler tonight. I also explain why Grant Holmes should have a solid start against the White Sox, then I dive into a Yankees player prop with odds better than +200. Here are the best MLB player props and bets for June 9th.
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Tuesday’s Best MLB Player Props & Bets
(Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook)
Grant Holmes Over 5.5 Strikeouts (+160)
Holmes is averaging 4.75 strikeouts per start, but he's only struck out fewer than four batters once all season. Four strikeouts is a great floor entering a start against an offense that has struck out 598 times this season.
The biggest problem is that Holmes has struck out exactly four batters in seven of his 12 starts. Still, he's averaging nearly one strikeout per inning, and he's pitched at least six innings in five starts this season. Additionally, he has one 10-strikeout performance, an outing that came in just 5.0 innings.
While you could take a safer route and back Holmes to throw five strikeouts for -124, I believe there's more value in backing him to throw six. The price for Over 4.5 is high considering how he's pitched this year, but this is such a good matchup that it's worth taking a shot on this alt line for cheap.
Zack Wheeler Under 5.5 Strikeouts (+100)
Wheeler has struck out 48 batters in 50.2 innings, and against almost any other team, I'd probably take him to hit this Over. But against the Blue Jays, this is too big of a ask.
The Blue Jays have the second-fewest strikeouts in the league, despite striking out 11 times against the Phillies last night. But it's important to remember that all those strikeouts came against Cristopher Sanchez, a pitcher with 113 strikeouts in 93.1 innings. Sanchez has at least seven strikeouts in all but two of his starts. Meanwhile, Wheeler has struck out fewer than six batters three times this season, and he's yet to strike out more than eight in a single start.
Wheeler actually has solid numbers against the Blue Jays, striking out 21 batters in 81 at-bats. However, Wheeler has pitched at least 6.0 innings in seven consecutive starts, and in four of those outings, he had six or fewer strikeouts. Though the Blue Jays, who have scored just 272 runs this season, are unlikely to chase Wheeler early, he'll need to bring his best stuff for at least 7.0 innings to have any shot of hitting this total against them.
Ben Rice 2+ Hits (+210)
Last night, Rice went 2-of-3 against the Guardians to bring his season average to .304. He's now hit safely in three of his four games against Cleveland this season. More importantly, Rice has hit safely in nine of his last 11 games. He's recorded multiple hits in six of those contests.
Tonight, Rice faces Guardians' starter Slade Cecconi. Though Rice didn't record a hit against him last week, Cecconi also put together one of his best starts of the season. I expect the high-powered Yankees' offense to get the better of him this time around.
Cecconi has allowed 76 hits in 57.2 innings. He has allowed at least five hits in 10 of his 13 starts. He's also allowed at least 10 hits twice. Rice has never recorded a hit against Cecconi, but based on all these stats, it's just a matter of time before Rice gets the better of the Guardians' struggling starter. For +210, it's worth taking a slight risk in a matchup that is much better for Rice than history shows.
Phil Wood is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Phil, check out his archive and follow him @Phil_Wood_Jr.