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Eys Breakers: Expert Picks – MLB Strikeout Props For Friday

Keith Eyster Fri 8/26 11:56am PT
Our MLB experts are backing Spencer Strider's props tonight.
Image Credit: Imagn

Betting analyst Keith Eyster gives his best MLB player props picks for today – Friday, August 26, 2022.

We have a full schedule in MLB today with all 30 teams in action. Nothing gets started before 6:40 ET, so there will be plenty of action on this Friday evening. 

Weather is mostly clear across the league as well, with Boston the primary exception to monitor. Kevin Roth thinks there is a fairly significant chance of a delay in Boston as of his morning forecast, with a postponement on the table as well.

Free MLB Player Props Picks For Today

Chris Bassitt Over 5.5 Strikeouts (-115) 

Let’s get started in New York, where the Mets continue their four-game set with the Colorado Rockies. Chris Bassitt will make his 24th start of the season for the Mets.

Bassitt has been rock solid this season with a 3.26 ERA that is fully supported by a 3.53 SIERA and 3.50 xFIP. He has been better than league average with a 23.8% strikeout rate and a very strong 6.2% walk rate. 

Bassitt has recorded over 5.5 strikeouts in 14 of his 23 starts this season. One of his biggest strengths is his ability to pitch deep into games. He has averaged over 98.5 pitches and 6.1 innings per start. 

He gets a great matchup today in his pitcher-friendly home park against a team traveling away from the most hitter-friendly park in baseball. The Rockies have been among the worst offenses in baseball away from Coors Field. They have posted just an 80 wRC+ on the road this season, and their .284 wOBA ranks fifth worst in the league. They also strike out at a rate of 22.5% on the road versus just 19.0% at home. 

Bassitt should be able to dominate this struggling offense and pitch into the late innings of this game. I like him to go over 5.5 strikeouts. 

Spencer Strider Over 6.5 Strikeouts (-145)

Next, we head to St. Louis, for a battle between NL contenders with the Cardinals hosting the Atlanta Braves. Spencer Strider will make his 16th start in what has been a dominant rookie season. 

Strider has simply been incredible this season with a 2.95 ERA that actually leans on the unlucky side of the variance spectrum when compared to his 2.53 SIERA and 2.51 xFIP. His 37.3% strikeout rate is the best in baseball by a significant margin among pitchers with a minimum of 100 innings pitched this season – Shohei Ohtani is second on the list at 33.9%.

Strider has recorded over 6.5 strikeouts in 9 of his 15 starts this season. One of those starts came against this St. Louis team early last month. He dominated them over 6.0 shutout innings with 12 strikeouts. Matchups have not mattered much to Strider as he has also posted big games against the Astros, Phillies, and Nationals (before they traded away Soto and Bell.) 

Strider is live for a monster performance any time he steps on the mound. I like him to have another one against the Cardinals today and go over 6.5 strikeouts. 

Gerritt Cole Over 7.5 Strikeouts (-110)

Finally, we head out to Oakland for one of the biggest mismatches of the day, as the Athletics take on the New York Yankees. Gerritt Cole takes the ball for the Yankees in his 26th start of the season. 

Cole is in the midst of another fantastic season for the Yankees, although he has taken a loss in three of his last four starts, and his 3.41 ERA is inflated by his standards. He has uncharacteristically allowed 16 runs in his last five starts, but that is mostly the product of a run of some bad luck. His 2.82 SIERA and 2.81 xFIP remain elite, as does his 31.7% strikeout rate. 

Cole continues to have one of the longest leashes in baseball as he consistently tops 100 pitches and he consistently works at least 6 innings. He has been over 7.5 strikeouts in 5 of his last 8 starts, and he gets a fantastic matchup today. 

Oakland has been one of the worst offenses in baseball all season long. They have just an 84 wRC+ and their .276 wOBA is the second worst in baseball. They strike out at a rate of 23.4% versus right handed pitching, which is the 8th highest in the league. 

Cole should be able to dominate this Oakland team and pitch deep into the game. I am expecting at least 7 innings here, and he should be able to go over 7.5 strikeouts. 

Player Props Betting Card For Today

That will do it for today’ breakdown of the MLB slate. We were able to identify three strikeout props to target: 

Thank you for reading and good luck with your bets!