Best MLB player prop bets for Monday, June 5

It’s a relatively light MLB slate on Monday, with just eight games on the docket as many teams travel following their weekend series. But the prop bet market never sleeps, and even with fewer options to choose from, we’re here to help you turn a profit with three of our favorite plays of the day. (All odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.)

MLB player prop bets: Monday, June 5

Juan Soto, over 1.5 total bases (+120)

Soto is coming off a scorching May, with a .333/.482/.632 slash line, five homers and 11 doubles in the month. He’s especially teeing off against right-handed pitching, posting a .454 slugging percentage and 1.007 OPS. All of which bodes very well for his matchup on Monday, facing Chicago Cubs righty Kyle Hendricks in just his third start of the year.

Hendricks is understandably still shaking off some rust after a shoulder injury delayed his spring, with 12 hits and five walks allowed through his first 9.1 innings pitched. Lefties in particular are finding success so far, with a gaudy .364 batting average that’s 100 points higher than his mark against righties. Expect Soto to bag at least one extra-base hit tonight.

Andrew Abbott, over 5.5 strikeouts (+110)

If you haven’t yet heard about Abbott, now’s your chance to get acquainted. MLB Pipeline’s No. 95 overall prospect has been putting up eye-popping numbers for almost a full calendar year now, striking out 249 batters in just 172 innings since the start of last season — including 54 (with a 3.05 ERA) in 38.1 frames at Triple-A since getting promotion in late April.

The Cincinnati Reds finally decided to make the call over the weekend, bringing Abbott up for his first MLB start on Monday in lieu of Hunter Greene (who needs a few extra days to rest his sore hip). It’s hard to ask for a better landing spot for the young lefty: His opponent tonight, the Milwaukee Brewers, have the league’s lowest OPS and its highest strikeout rate against left-handed pitching. Abbott cleared this K total in nine of his 10 Minor League starts this year, including six of seven in Triple-A, and at plus odds I’m willing to bet he does it again in his Major League debut.

Brayan Bello, under 16.5 outs recorded (+100)

Bello was better in the month of May after a rough start to his 2023 season, but the young righty still isn’t working very deep in games. He’s pitched into the sixth just twice in eight starts, and his last start, at home against the Cincinnati Reds, lasted only four frames. Bello will again be taking the mound at hitter-friendly Fenway Park on Monday, but this time his opponent is much tougher: the Tampa Bay Rays, the league’s toughest offense on right-handed pitching so far this year. Even if Bello is able to survive, it’s unlikely that he does o efficiently enough to get through six innings.