MLB Betting Guide: Best Bets and Top Player Props for Friday, March 29
Our best bet on the Texas Rangers (-115) got us to the cash-out window last night with a walk-off winner in 10 innings. It's great to start out the 2024 MLB season with a winner and we're primed and ready for Day 2.
Need help betting on today's MLB slate? We got your back! Check out our betting guide below, which includes the best bets and top player props for Friday, March 29.
Player Prop: Carlos Rodon Under 5.5 Ks (-142)
We cashed in several times on Rodon unders last season, and we don't mind riding it again over at FanDuel for our first MLB player prop bet of 2024. Rodon was an All-Star in both 2021 and 2022, but he hasn't been fully healthy since then.
Through 14 starts in 2023 for the Yanks, Rodon had a median strikeout number of just 4. The 31-year-old's K-rate was also just 22.4% (an 11% drop from his 2022 number), which only put him in the 41st percentile. Rodon looked a little better during Spring Training, but still mustered only 16 strikeouts through 19.1 innings of work.
Lastly, Rodon gets a tough matchup against the Astros today for his first start of 2024. Houston's lineup had one of the lowest strikeout rates in all of baseball against lefties last season. Six Astros hitters struck out less than 20.4% of the time in 2023. Give us the Under!
Best Bet: Guardians (-130)
I think Oakland will be a little bit better than last year, but I have no idea why Cleveland is being priced so cheap in this spot. The Guardians should at least contend for a playoff spot this season, while the A's will once again be one of the worst teams in all of baseball.
Cleveland will send Logan Allen to the hill, a crafty little lefty that doesn't throw that hard but has a decent curveball. He only went 7-8 in 2023, but he sported a pretty nice ERA of just 3.81. Though Allen's stuff is far from overpowering, he should be able to contain this Oakland lineup that's filled with lots of Triple A players.
The A's will counter with Ross Stripling, a veteran righty that went 0-5 last year with a putrid ERA of 5.36. The fact that Oakland is using him as their No. 2 starting pitcher tells us all we need to know. This Guardians lineup hasn't seen much of Stripling, but Josh Naylor is 3 for 3 with a homer against him in his career.
Our numbers say this line should be closer to Cleveland (-150), so we'll gladly jump on this number. Lay the moderate price with the Guards here! Good luck, fellow sports investors!
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