Get excited.
On Tuesday night, Jac Caglianone will make his major league debut for the Royals. The sixth-overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, Caglianone is not only Kansas City’s top prospect, but a top 10 prospect in all of baseball, per MLB Pipeline. The Florida product is known for his prodigious power, something that was on display in Caglianone’s brief stop in Triple-A. The 22-year-old hit six long balls in a mere 47 at-bats. Not too shabby.
With the eyes of the baseball world fixated, here’s my best Jac Caglianone prop bet for Tuesday night’s matchup with the Cardinals.
Best Jac Caglianone Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
Jac Caglianone 2+ Total Bases (+140)
While I am of the belief that Caglianone will have some issues adjusting to the MLB level — particularly from a contract standpoint — this is not a matchup that is going to exploit his weaknesses. Andre Pallante simply is not a strikeout pitcher. At least that’s what a 25th percentile whiff rate (21.8%) and a 11th percentile strikeout rate (15.9%) suggest. It’s not a perfect spot for Caglianone, as Pallante possesses reverse-splits for an RHP and is elite at keeping the ball on the ground, but the stuff is certainly not overpowering. Caglianone will put a ball in play.
It’s also not like Pallante is coming into this start on the hot streak. Since April 17, over a span of eight outings and 45.1 innings, St. Louis’ right-hander has pitched to an underwhelming 4.96 ERA. In that same stretch, Pallante’s struck out only 14.6% of opponents and he’s surrendered 1.39 opponent home runs per nine. Caglianone has the tools and raw talent to hit Pallante hard and make an impression in his first MLB game.
