Justin Verlander has had an up-and-down start to 2024. How will he fare against the Oakland A's? Will Braxton Garrett pitch long enough to strike out over three Arizona Diamondbacks? And can Freddie Freeman take advantage of a great matchup against the Cincinnati Reds?
Here are the best PrizePicks plays for Friday, May 24's MLB games.
Our PrizePicks Cheat Sheet helps bettors by comparing lines from PrizePicks vs. our daily MLB projections >>
Justin Verlander has had an up-and-down start to 2024. How will he fare against the Oakland A's? Will Braxton Garrett pitch long enough to strike out over three Arizona Diamondbacks? And can Freddie Freeman take advantage of a great matchup against the Cincinnati Reds?
Here are the best PrizePicks plays for Friday, May 24's MLB games.
Our PrizePicks Cheat Sheet helps bettors by comparing lines from PrizePicks vs. our daily MLB projections >>
Friday’s Best MLB PrizePicks Player Predictions
This Season: 33-26-1
Verlander has been fairly inconsistent this season. He's allowed 15 earned runs in 34.0 innings. He's 2-2, has struck out 26 batters and allowed seven runs in a single game against the New York Yankees earlier this season. But he's also performed quite well against teams prone to strikeouts. That is why he should hit the over tonight.
Two of his six starts have come against teams that rank in the top 10 in the league in total strikeouts. In those two appearances, he struck out a total of 15 batters and at least seven in each game. The A's have the second-most strikeouts in the league this season. Plus, they're tied for the seventh-fewest runs, so they are unlikely to chase Verlander before the sixth or seventh inning. That will give him plenty of time to hit this over.
Braxton Garrett's numbers are bad across the board. He has a 10.24 ERA, has allowed 11 earned runs and 12 hits in 9.2 innings and has yet to pitch over 5.1 innings in a game. Yet, he's still managed to strike out 13 batters in two games despite getting shelled by opposing lineups.
This play is a bit of a risk, but even if Garrett gets pulled in the fifth inning as he did in his last start, he should still be able to clear this number. Against the New York Mets last Saturday, he allowed seven hits and six earned runs. He pitched just 4.1 innings, but he still struck out five batters. The Diamondbacks don't strike out much, but this number is so low that it won't matter. If this were at four, we'd stay away, and if it were at five, we'd take the under. But at three, back Garrett to do what he's done all season.
Freeman faces the Reds' Graham Ashcraft tonight, and if prior experience is any indicator, he's in for a great game. He's 4-of-6 against Ashcraft in his career. He also has two walks and has never struck out.
Freeman hasn't recorded a hit in his last two games, going 0-for-8 during that span. But before that, he had five hits in three games, including one home run and one double. Though he doesn't have an extra-base hit against Ashcraft in his career, a multi-hit game seems very likely based on past performances.
Phil Wood is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Phil, check out his archive and follow him @Phil_Wood_Jr.
