MLB
3 MLB Prop Bets to Target on Wednesday 8/3/22

Player props can be useful in a variety of ways -- from taking advantage of them straight up (to the tune of cold hard cash) to measuring a player's potential to produce in daily fantasy baseball on FanDuel. Here, we're going to focus on the former.

Utilizing our projections as a guide and looking at the odds provided at MLB odds, here are some spots where you can find value today in the prop-betting market.

Here are some MLB player prop bets to make tonight.

Please note that betting lines and our game projections may change throughout the day after this article is published. Also, the weather may be an issue in some locations.

Manny Machado To Hit a Home Run (+320)/Jake Cronenworth To Hit a Home Run (+520)

The San Diego Padres have an elite matchup to show off their power.

The big splash at the trade deadline was Juan Soto and Josh Bell being traded from the Washington Nationals to the Padres. A lineup that had plenty of power added even more pop. Tonight, they are taking on Chad Kuhl, which is a very favorable matchup for some home runs.

As of now, there's no indication that either Soto (+340) or Bell (+420) will be in the lineup for the Padres. If they are in the lineup, I'll want some exposure to their home run props, but we don't have that information yet.

So, in their absence, we can turn to Manny Machado and Jake Cronenworth for home runs.

Kuhl struggles versus both lefties and righties. Kuhl is allowing a .486 SLG, a 5.26 xFIP, 1.38 HR/9, a 39.5% fly-ball rate, and a 38.7% hard-contact rate versus lefties. He is surrendering a .425 SLG, a 4.60 xFIP, 1.18 HR/9, a 41.3% fly-ball rate, and a 29.2% hard-contact rate versus righties. It's bad across the board.

Cronenworth enters this game with a 117 wRC+, a .171 ISO, a .332 wOBA, a 51.2% fly-ball rate, and a 25.6% hard-contact rate versus right-handed pitchers.

Machado comes in with a 136 wRC+, a .186 ISO, a .360 wOBA, a 38.7% fly-ball rate, and a 33.2% hard-contact rate against righties.

As always, I'm also adding Machado To Record an RBI (+115) and Cronenworth To Record an RBI (+125).

Justin Steele Under 3.5 Strikeouts (+112)

This might be one of the few times we are actively hoping for rain to impact a game.

That's right -- we want to see rain in the Chicago Cubs-St. Louis Cardinals game tonight. Let me explain.

The rain is expected to start in the middle of the game, and that's actually a good thing for this bet. Often times during rain delays, we don't see the starting pitcher return to the hill after a lengthy break. That would help with Justin Steele's under 3.5 strikeouts. He could start the game, see a rain delay, not return, and then boom -- we win the prop.

Now, this isn't solely dependent on the rain -- there's more to it. Steele comes in with a 21.6% strikeout rate this season, which is lower than the league average of 22.3%. Steele has hit the under on 3.5 strikeouts in 5 of his last 10 starts. On top of all that, the Cardinals have a 19.9% strikeout rate versus left-handed pitchers, which is the seventh-lowest in the league.

The matchup isn't conducive for strikeouts, Steele isn't a big strikeout pitcher, and we have the potential for rain to impact things -- in a good way.

Freddie Freeman 2+ Total Bases (+105)

The Los Angeles Dodgers have a modest 4.18 implied run total against the San Francisco Giants.

The Giants will have Alex Cobb on the mound. Cobb is a good pitcher, but he's been hit with some bad luck right now. Cobb is rocking a 3.27 xFIP and allowing 0.45 HR/9 and a .296 wOBA to left-handed hitters this season. However, we also see him allowing a .355 SLG, a .319 BABIP, and a lower 20.7% strikeout rate in this split.

Essentially, Cobb isn't getting beat by fly balls and home runs. Rather, he's getting beat by balls in play that are consistently going for hits. It also doesn't help that the Giants are in the bottom four of the league in fielding percentage. This is no fault of Cobb's, but if balls in play are finding holes, it presents an opening -- no pun intended -- for opposing hitters.

Freddie Freeman comes in with a 172 wRC+, a .415 wOBA, a .223 ISO, a very low 11.5% strikeout rate, and a .359 BABIP versus right-handed pitchers. It's a straightforward play at plus money.

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