Another Saturday means another full 15-game slate around the Majors — and another full menu of potential prop bets. It’s a lot to sift through, so if you’re looking to place some bets today, here are three of our favorite plays (with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook).
MLB player prop bets: Saturday, June 17
Mookie Betts and Will Smith, to record a hit (-105)
The Los Angeles Dodgers are desperate for a win on Saturday after dropping a heartbreaking 13-inning affair in the series opener against the rival San Francisco Giants on Friday night. Giants lefty Alex Wood will be making his return from the IL; he’s been out with a back strain since May 31, when he was tagged for six runs on eight hits and three walks in just 4.1 innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Wood has struggled without the platoon advantage this year, allowing a .315/.411/.511 slash line to righties.
Both Betts (1.087 OPS against lefties) and Smith (1.068) have teed off on southpaws this year, and especially with Wood knocking some rust off after a three-week layoff, they’re both a good bet to notch at least one hit on Saturday night. They both know Wood well, too, batting a combined 13-for-33 against him (.393) in their careers.
Mitch Keller, over 6.5 strikeouts (-105)
Keller struck out just a single batter against the Oakland A’s at the beginning of June, but other than that, he’s been among the most consistent K artists in the game: The former top prospect has fanned 10, 8, 8, 13, 8, 8, 8 and 7 hitters in his eight other starts since April 27. He’s also excelled on five days of rest rather than four, which he’ll have heading into his start on Saturday against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Milwaukee has the league’s second-highest strikeout rate against righties since the calendar flipped to June, most recently allowing Minnesota Twins starter Bailey Ober to strike out seven over six innings. Ober’s stuff (8.4 K/9) isn’t nearly as electric as Keller’s (10.4), and the Pirates ace should clear this number pretty easily.
Justin Steele, under 4.5 strikeouts (-120)
This is less an indictment of Steele than it is a numbers game. The Chicago Cubs ace has been out since May 31, when he left his start against the Tampa Bay Rays with a forearm strain. He elected not to go out on a short rehab assignment, meaning that his start against the Baltimore Orioles will be his first time back on the mound in a competitive environment in almost three weeks. The team hasn’t put a hard and fast pitch limit on Steele, but it’s hard to imagine him being allowed to go much past 60 or so — especially given how important he is to the team’s future. With such little rope to work with, I’m betting against him reaching five strikeouts against an Orioles lineup that has the 12th-highest OPS in baseball against lefties this year.
