Friday's Major League Baseball schedule is brimming with action while featuring 15 games, and we're offering our top MLB prop picks and best bets based on the best MLB odds.
A third of the 2024 MLB schedule is in the books for most clubs as May comes to a close on Friday night.
Every team is in action, with the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds getting the day started at 2:20 p.m. ET. Then there are eight matchups beginning at or around 7 p.m. ET, including the high-flying Cleveland Guardians against the Washington Nationals. We're eyeing the explosive Jose Ramirez to hit the Over on his total bases prop, and there's an appealing price at one of our best sports betting sites.
The Oakland Athletics and Atlanta Braves also square off at 7:20 p.m. ET. The Braves remain a top contender in our World Series odds despite losing Ronald Acuna Jr. recently for the se ason. But there's a mouthwatering matchup for Braves hurler Reynaldo Lopez, and we'll break that down further.
Here are our MLB player props and expert picks for Friday (MLB picks based on odds via our best MLB betting sites; Pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
Friday's MLB expert picks
- Reynaldo Lopez Over 5.5 strikeouts (-120 via bet365) ????
- Jose Ramirez Over 1.5 total bases (+110 via DraftKings) ????
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MLB player props
| DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars | bet365 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odds | -110 | -108 | N/A | -121 | -110 |
Game info: Athletics vs. Braves | Moneyline: Braves (-227 via Betway) | Total: 8.5 via Betway | Start time: 7:20 p.m. ET
If thinking about the Braves makes you sad right now because Acuna is lost for another year, then Lopez is here to fill your heart and wallet with good vibes.
Lopez has been stellar over nine starts in 2024 while posting a sparkling 1.75 ERA. He's had three scoreless outings and has given up three-plus runs just once.
The veteran hasn't exactly been a strikeout maestro when deployed as a starter. He's not putrid in that regard either though, with his 8.2 K/9 in 2024 hovering just a few ticks below the current league average of 8.5.
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The Oakland A's have a fun habit of elevating pitcher punchouts. So if Lopez is sitting around the middle, getting to the next rung against a lineup that's whiffed the second-most times leaguewide isn't a far leap.
Facing A's outfielder Brent Rooker alone could get Lopez well on his way to cashing this Over. Rooker is one of two A's batters who has already struck out 55-plus times, and he's recorded multi-strikeout outings in four of his last six games. That includes two contests with three walks of shame, and second baseman Zack Gelof is at 56 strikeouts over just 39 games.
A $10 wager at the -108 odds through FanDuel would lead to a $19.26 payout, with a 51.9% implied probability.
Best odds: -108 via FanDuel
| DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars | bet365 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Odds | +100 | -120 | N/A | +101 | -105 |
Game info: Nationals vs. Guardians | Moneyline: Guardians (-213 via Betway) | Total: 7.5 via Betway | Start time: 7:10 p.m. ET
A different imposter version of Jose Ramirez surfaced for the first month of the season. This strange fellow we don't often see registered just a .252 batting average with a .723 OPS.
Never forget that hitting a baseball at all, let alone with any authority, is insanely difficult, which is why the sport has a way of making even the most unfairly talented hitters look normal for stretches. But now Ramirez's mediocre twin has left us, and it seems the highly gifted slugger is back while announcing his presence with many loud thumps.
It's the final day of May, and throughout his 27 games during the month Ramirez has been vastly outshining his poor April. His batting average skyrocketed to .294, as did his OPS while sittin g at 1.067 during May.
He's been volcanic lately too while recording seven multi-hit games over his last 15 outings, including two with three knocks. More importantly, the third baseman is hitting for power, as he's registered a whopping 14 extra-base hits during that stretch, with seven of his 16 homers on the season.
Now a white-hot hitter who's put his sluggish start far behind gets to face the launchpad known as Patrick Corbin. The Washington Nationals starter is carrying a 6.12 ERA, and he's already allowed nine dingers over 11 starts, and five across his previous two. His K/9 is disastrously low at 5.4, and both his expected batting average and expected ERA rank among the bottom 3% leaguewide, according to Baseball Savant.
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The even-money odds we're getting here from DraftKings are highly appealing next to the offerings from some of our other best sportsbooks, and most notably FanDuel at -120. A $10 wager would lead to a $20 payout, with an implied probability of 50%.
Best odds: +100 via Draftkings
MLB player props made Friday at 9:30 a.m. ET.
Here are our best MLB betting sites:
- Caesars Promo 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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