Kevin Davies
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Welcome to another Friday in the Major league Baseball season! It’s a very busy day in baseball with several divisional matchups and games with postseason implications, so there are plenty of opportunities for value in the player prop market. I’m currently on a 3-0 run with my player props and I’m looking to extend that run to 5-0 with these 2 plays! Let’s dive into today’s best MLB player prop bets, while you can also find out our MLB picks for Friday, September 13.
Yusei Kikuchi (HOU) Over 17.5 outs (-150)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing
Arguably the best trade deadline acquisition has been Yusei Kikuchi. The former Blue Jay was dealt to Houston for prospects and the Astros got the veteran arm that they needed. Since joining the Astros’ staff, Kikuchi is 4-0 with a 3.07 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP. He has limited hitters to a .195 batting average with a 32% strikeout rate in that 7-start span, so his success hasn’t been a fluke. Tonight, the lefty gets a generous matchup against the Los Angeles Angels. The Angels haven’t been a threat for most of the season as the year pretty much ended when Mike Trout got hurt. Los Angeles has been especially bad against left-handed pitching since it ranks in the bottom half of the league in most offensive categories against southpaws since the beginning of August. Because Kikuchi is walking fewer hitters and has a fortunate matchup against a slumping L.A. lineup, I have him projected for 6.1 innings tonight.
Start the weekend right with our MLB parlay picks at +976 odds
Bailey Ober (MIN) to record a win (-125)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing
I’ve been a Bailey Ober fan since the start. As a person who appreciates good pitching, it’s hard to dislike a 6’9” pitcher who throws a disappearing changeup. Ober is a menacing figure on the mound because of his stature but he doesn’t throw as hard as you might think. He relies on his phenomenal changeup for almost 30% of his pitches and also has a solid cutter with a wipeout slider. He enters this outing with a 3.28 xERA in 27 starts and will take on a Reds lineup that has terrible numbers against him.
Cincinnati’s lineup has 46 combined at-bats against Ober and has just 7 hits, which equals a .109 batting average. No Reds hitter has multiple hits against Ober which demonstrates just how dominant he has been against them. Plus, Ober is in the midst of the best stretch of his career. He has thrown back-to-back 1 hitters in his last 2 starts and has racked up 15 strikeouts in those 13.0 innings. Because of his past success against the Reds’ lineup and the run he’s been on, I’m happy backing Ober for his 13th win of the season.
Read our Boston Red Sox vs New York Yankees prediction for tonight’s big matchup
