While there will be plenty of fun bets to dive into over the MLB All-Star break (hello, Home Run Derby!) we head into the last weekend of MLB action for a few days.
Today, we look to take advantage of a pair of free-swinging teams with some strikeout props as Blue Jays young gun Alek Manoah goes against the Tampa Bay Rays while Kenta Maeda continues to try and turn around his season when he faces the Detroit Tigers.
We break down and pick these games and more with our best free MLB prop bets and predictions for Friday, July 9.
Today’s MLB props and picks
Alek Manoah Over 6.5 Strikeouts (-125)
While he is only seven starts into his big-league career, the Toronto Blue Jays have to be thrilled with what they have seen from Alek Manoah at this point. Thanks to some great fastball movement and a devastating slider, the rookie has pitched to a 2.70 ERA with a 1.01 WHIP and is limiting opponents to a .187 batting average.
That includes pitching seven innings of three-hit shutout ball against the Tampa Bay Rays in his last start in what was an eventual 11-1 Blue Jays win. Manoah also took advantage of the free-swinging Rays and ended up striking out 10 batters.
While this is a moderately high number for the big right-hander, the Rays have really embraced the “strikeouts don’t matter” way of thinking as they get punched out more than anyone in baseball at 10.16 times per game. Manoah has the swing-and-miss stuff to go over this number again.
Pirates Team Total Under 3.5 (-140)
The New York Mets are in first place in the National League East thanks to one thing: pitching. And Taijuan Walker has been a big part of that.
The right-hander has been outstanding his first season in Queens, pitching to a 2.44 ERA, a 1.01 WHIP while limiting opponents to a .194 batting average. He’ll look to keep rolling as the Mets host the Pittsburgh Pirates, who are still masquerading around as an MLB team.
Yes, the poor Pirates are lucky relegation isn’t a thing in the MLB or they could be sent down to AAA. They score the fewest runs per game in baseball and rank 21st in batting average and dead last in OPS when it comes to facing right-handed pitching.
To make things even tougher on the Buccos, Walker has been close to unhittable at home this season. In seven starts at Citi Field, Walker has a 1.52 ERA, an 0.89 WHIP with opponents hitting just .172 against him.
With the Pirates scoring three runs or fewer nine times in their last 10 games, they are a good bet to stay Under their team total in this one going up against a quality arm like Walker.
Kenta Maeda Over 5.5 Strikeouts (-140)
Like the Minnesota Twins' season in general, it has been a disappointing year for starter Kenta Maeda. A year after finishing second in American League CY Young voting, Maeda has regressed to the tune of a 5.03 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP in 13 starts this season.
That said, Maeda has been a little better recently, lowering that WHIP to 1.28 and limiting opponents to a .220 batting average over his last five starts. That’s in part because the right-hander has been getting more swings and misses. He has 31 strikeouts over his last 25 innings.
Friday, Maeda will get the chance to keep the punchouts coming as he faces the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers strike out the second-most in the MLB at 9.92 times per game and he has gone over this number three times in his last five starts, which includes racking up 10 Ks against the Royals in his last outing.
MLB betting card for July 9
- Alek Manoah Over 6.5 Strikeouts (-125)
- Pirates Team Total Under 3.5 (-140)
- Kenta Maeda Over 5.5 Strikeouts (-140)
Picks made on 7/9/2021 at 11:00 a.m. ET
MLB parlays
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