Best player prop bets to consider for Red Sox vs. Rays Game 1 of ALDS

To wrap up the night in the majors, we have the Boston Red Sox taking on their AL East foes in the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 1 of the ALDS at 8:07 p.m. ET. The Red Sox advanced to the ALDS after defeating the New York Yankees 6-2 in the AL Wild Card Game on Tuesday night.

The Rays won the AL East division for the second straight season as they won a franchise-best 100 wins. Boston will have Eduardo Rodriguez on the mound, while the Rays will start Shane McClanahan. Below we are going to go over some of our favorite player props for Thursday night’s ALDS Game 1, courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.

Shane McClanahan over 4.5 strikeouts (-105)

The Rays will have their best starting pitcher on the mound for tonight’s Game 1 in 24-year-old Shane McClanahan. The young starter has looked like a vet this season with a record of 10-6 and 3.43 ERA in 25 starts. McClanahan has had a fair share of success against the Red Sox, which is good news for fans and bettors.

In three regular-season starts against Boston, he’s 1-1 with an ERA of 2.81, to go along with 18 strikeouts in 16.0 IP. Within those three starts, McClanahan has gone over 4.5 strikeouts twice. Both of those starts coincidentally came at Tropicana Field, where he pitched 5.0 and 6.0 innings. Furthermore, the 6-foot-1 pitcher has gone over his strikeout prop in 6 out his last 10 starts.

Eduardo Rodriguez over 4.5 hits allowed (+110)

After pitching in an inning of relief in the regular-season finale last weekend, the Sox will give the Game 1 start to Rodriguez. The 28-year-old has been up and down this season for Boston with a 13-8 record and 4.74 ERA in 32 games (31 starts). Rodriguez can rack up the strikeouts (185 in 157.2 IP), however he can get hit around too. Against a team like the Rays, who can hit the ball out of the park, it will be imperative for him to not leave the ball in the middle of the plate.

In his four starts against Tampa Bay this season, Rodriguez is 1-1 with an ERA of 4.71 and has allowed 23 hits in 21.0 IP. Additionally, in his last 10 starts, the veteran pitcher has allowed more than 4.5 hits six times.

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