Getaway day in the majors leaves us with just six games on the docket, but we're still offering our top MLB player props and best bets for Thursday based on the best MLB odds.
Mother Nature is wreaking havoc thus far this season, and it seems no teams have dealt with her wrath quite like the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves. The two have had multiple games postponed already, and then their matchup against each other on Wednesday suffered the same fate.
The Mets and Braves will try to do it again on Thursday, with first pitch expected for 12:20 p.m. ET from Truist Park.
NL Central rivals will square off shortly after that at 1:10 p.m. ET, as the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds continue their series from Great American Ball Park.
The night concludes with perhaps the most intriguing game of the day. Baseball's No. 1 prospect and M LB Rookie of the Year odds favorite, Jackson Holliday, looks to put on a better performance in his second major league game. His Baltimore Orioles again face the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, with first pitch expected for 7:10 p.m. ET.
We delved deeper into the rookie's impact on the Orioles with our Jackson Holliday odds and bets for 2024.
Here are our MLB player props and best bets for Thursday (MLB picks based on odds via our
best MLB betting sites; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Thursday's MLB best bets
- Jon Gray Under 6.5 strikeouts (-129 via Caesars) ????
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Thursday's MLB player props
| DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars | bet365 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odds | Under 6.5 (-130) | Under 6.5 (-142) | Under 6.5 (-143) | Under 6.5 (-129) | Under 6.5 (-145) |
Game info: Athletics vs. Rangers | Moneyline: Rangers (-180 via Betway) | Total: Over 9.5(-105)/Under 9.5 (-115) via Betway | Start time: 2:35 p.m. ET
Right-hander Jon Gray had a very strong first season with the World Series odds-contender Texas Rangers after leaving the Colorado Rockies and Coors Field in 2022. He managed 9.47 strikeouts per nine innings and had an ERA below 4.00. However, his strikeouts dipped to 8.12 per nine last season, and his ERA finished at 4.12. Now, through two starts in 2024, Gray has struck out just five over 7 1/3, giving up 12 hits and six walks.
Working in Gray's favor, though, is that he has perhaps the easiest matchup there is. The Oakland Athletics are terrible at scoring runs (third-fewest), stealing bases (second-fewest), and just simply getting hits (fourth-lowest average). On top of that, they also strike out at the fourt h-highest rate in the league. Can Gray take advantage of that?
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Our projections suggest yes, but only to a certain extent. Gray is expected to rack up more strikeouts than he did in either of his first two starts, but that projected total of 5.51 is still far below the seven he'd need to clear this total.
Gray's total opened at 7.5 at our best sports betting sites before the Under was obliterated overnight.
These -129 odds at Caesars – and the similar -130 at DraftKings – provide us with nearly 21% positive expected value based on our projection, and they could soon be more in line with the -140 price you see elsewhere.
Pinnacle, which features one of the most respected trading teams in the sports betting industry, is already as short as -179.
MLB best bets made Thursday at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Here are our best MLB betting sites:
- Caesars Pr omo Code: SBRBONUS1000 | Read our Caesars Review
- BetMGM Bonus Code: SBRBONUS | Read our BetMGM Review
- bet365 Bonus Code: SBRBONUS | Read our bet365 Review
- BetRivers Promo Code: SBRBONUS | Read our BetRivers Review
- FanDuel Promo Code | Read our FanDuel Review
- DraftKings Promo Code | Read our DraftKings Review
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* Bonuses not applicable in Ontario.
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- Best Live Betting Sites | Best Sportsbook Promos (U.S. only)