MLB

MLB Player Prop Bets to Target on Thursday 6/8/23

Thomas Vecchio  —  @Tom_Vecchio1 Jun 8th, 2023

Player props can be useful in a variety of ways -- from taking advantage of them straight up (to the tune of cold hard cash) to measuring a player's potential to produce in daily fantasy baseball on FanDuel. Here, we're going to focus on the former.

Utilizing our projections as a guide and looking at the MLB odds at FanDuel Sportsbook, here are some spots where you can find value today in the prop-betting market.

Here are some MLB player prop bets to make tonight.

Please note that betting lines and our game projections may change throughout the day after this article is published. Also, the weather may be an issue in some locations.

Aaron Civale Under 4.5 Strikeouts (-108)

With a tougher matchup, under 4.5 strikeouts for Aaron Civale is the spot to look.

A matchup against the Boston Red Sox doesn't put Civale in a favorable spot for a lot of strikeouts, and we want to side with the under tonight. The Red Sox come in with a 20.6% strikeout rate versus right-handed pitchers, which is the fifth-lowest in the league. On top of that, they have a .170 ISO (12th) and 103 wRC+ (9th), presenting an offense that has power, too.

When it comes to Civale, he isn't a high-strikeout pitcher to begin with. He comes in with a 17.1% strikeout rate, 7.9% swinging-strike rate, and 28.8% called-plus-swinging-strike (CSW) rate. For context, the league averages are a 22.8% strikeout rate, 11.0% swinging-strike rate, and 27.7% CSW rate.

Civale isn't racking up a ton of strikeouts, and with this type of matchup, the under is the clear play.

Shohei Ohtani To Record an RBI (+125)

I'm a simple man. I see a Shohei Ohtani prop at plus money, I'm interested.

The Los Angeles Angels come in with a 4.75 implied run total, which is the second-highest on tonight's slate. Ohtani is elite across the board, and to record a single RBI is +125, it doesn't get more simple than this.

Ohtani comes in with a 99 wRC+, .316 wOBA, .193 ISO, 35.0% hard-contact rate, and 30.0% fly-ball rate versus left-handed pitchers this season. The Angels are expected to score some runs tonight, and I want to get exposure to that via this RBI prop.

He will be taking on Drew Smyly, who is allowing a 3.70 xFIP, .387 wOBA, .542 SLG, .419 BABIP, and 34.9% fly-ball rate versus left-handed hitters this season. Smyly is struggling versus lefty hitters this season, and with Ohtani on the other side, I'll grab the RBI prop tonight.