Patrick Corbin hasn't had much success striking out batters this season. Will that change tonight against the Colorado Rockies? How will Tarik Skubal fare against the Boston Red Sox lineup? And can Aaron Judge get back on track after failing to go over 1.5 total bases last night against the Seattle Mariners?
Here are the best MLB PrizePicks player predictions for Wednesday, May 14th.
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Patrick Corbin hasn't had much success striking out batters this season. Will that change tonight against the Colorado Rockies? How will Tarik Skubal fare against the Boston Red Sox lineup? And can Aaron Judge get back on track after failing to go over 1.5 total bases last night against the Seattle Mariners?
Here are the best MLB PrizePicks player predictions for Wednesday, May 14th.
Our PrizePicks Cheat Sheet helps bettors by comparing lines from PrizePicks vs. our daily MLB projections >>
Wednesday’s Best MLB PrizePicks Player Predictions
This Season: 24-31-3
Patrick Corbin has only struck out five or more batters in two of his six starts this season. One of those performances came against the most strikeout-prone team in the league, the Los Angeles Angels, and the other came in his second start against the Athletics. While the Athletics barely strike out, Corbin benefited from facing the lineup twice in the same week.
Tonight, Corbin faces the Rockies, a team tied for the league lead in strikeouts. While this could be a huge game for him, recent performances suggest otherwise. His last start was against the Detroit Tigers, the team with the fifth-most strikeouts in the league. He only struck out three batters in seven innings. This season, Corbin has just 20 strikeouts in 31.2 innings. In his career, he's struck out just 17 Rockies in 72 at-bats. That won't get it done tonight.
Tarik Skubal is red-hot right now, striking out at least eight batters in three consecutive games. In two of those appearances, he struck out at least 11 batters. In his most recent start, he struck out 12 Texas Rangers. He has struck out at least eight batters in five of his eight starts, and tonight he faces the team with the third-most strikeouts in baseball.
The Red Sox have struck out 402 times this season, though they've also scored 216 runs, the fifth-most in the league. This allows them to chase starters early, which is likely why this number is only at 7.5 instead of being higher. Skubal has pitched at least five innings in every start, and he's pitched at least six in five of his last six. He also has an ERA of just 2.08, so he doesn't give up many runs. This is a high number, but take the more than.
Earlier this season, I said I'd avoid writing about Aaron Judge because it should just be assumed that his more than is in play every night. However, tonight's matchup is so good that I don't have a choice but to highlight it.
Judge will face off against Luis Castillo. While Castillo is a bad matchup for many, he's a great one for Judge. The Yankees slugger is 3-for-7 with a home run against Castillo, and he's walked five times. This means Judge has gotten the better of Castillo in eight of the 12 plate appearances he's had against him in his career.
Judge failed to go over 1.5 total bases last night, ending a streak of four consecutive such games. But he still recorded a hit, and he's now hit safely in five consecutive games. Castillo has only given up four home runs, but he's also allowed 42 hits in 43.1 innings. With how Judge has been hitting all season, back him to get either two hits or at least a double tonight.
Phil Wood is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Phil, check out his archive and follow him @Phil_Wood_Jr.
