Monday means a lighter slate around MLB, but with 10 games on tap, there’s still plenty of action — and plenty of options to choose from when searching out juicy player prop bets. Here are our three favorite plays of the day, with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
MLB player prop bets: Monday, July 17
Elly De La Cruz, over 0.5 steals (+165)
Perhaps you’ve heard of De La Cruz, the top prospect who’s already established himself as literally the fastest man in baseball since being called up last month. The Cincinnati Reds phenom has already swiped 16 bases in his first 33 games, including three in the span of about a minute:
In just 2 pitches, Elly De La Cruz stole 2B ➡️ 3B ➡️ Home pic.twitter.com/RYExcdAc07
— DraftKings Sportsbook (@DKSportsbook) July 8, 2023
The Reds give their players the green light more than any other team in baseball, and they should be running wild once again on Monday night. Their opponent, the San Francisco Giants, is one of the friendliest teams to run on in the league, starter Logan Webb specifically. Webb’s sinker-heavy approach should mean plenty of balls in play, which, considering De La Cruz’s considerable physical gifts, means he should turn at least one of those balls in play into a base hit. And once he gets on, he’s nearly guaranteed to swipe at least one bag.
Jesus Luzardo, over 6.5 strikeouts (+115)
Luzardo has been on a roll for the Miami Marlins of late; the lefty has put up a 1.14 ERA over his last five starts, with 40 strikeouts in just 31.2 innings. He’s cleared this number in nine of his last 11 outings, including racking up 8 Ks in a win over the St. Louis Cardinals on the Fourth of July. Luzardo will match up with the Redbirds again on Monday night, and St. Louis has whiffed a whopping 30.7% of the time — second-highest in baseball behind only the miserable Angels — since the start of the month. 6.5 is still a big number, but given those trends and how well Luzardo is throwing right now, it’s worth the risk at plus odds.
Lane Thomas, over 1.5 total bases (+115)
Thomas has very quietly enjoyed a breakout year for the Washington Nationals this year, slashing .299/.348/.490 with 14 homers and eight steals — including a gaudy .374/.424/.652 mark against lefties. He and the Nats should be able to take advantage of their matchup against Chicago Cubs southpaw Drew Smyly on Monday, who’s posted a 7.66 ERA over his last five starts. Thomas is 4-for-9 with a homer and a double lifetime against Smyly, and he should be in for another big night at Wrigley Field.
