This article is part of our MLB Picks series.
MLB Props: MLB Player Prop Picks for Friday, April 18
Friday brings a packed schedule in baseball with all 30 teams in action. That also means we have a lot of wagering opportunities to consider. Here are three of the top player props to target.
Mike Barner's season record: 14-1 (+10.24 units)
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Best MLB Player Prop Bets Today
Kansas City Royals 
at Detroit Tigers 
Picks
- Cole Ragans over 7.5 strikeouts (-115) at DraftKings Sportsbook for 1 Unit
Ragans set a new career high with his 29.3% strikeout rate last year. That came on the heels of his 28.8% strikeout rate in 2023. He has a whopping 36.6% strikeout rate through four starts this year. After recording just three strikeouts in his first start, he has strung together three straight games with at least 10 strikeouts.
Ragans has the potential to rack up strikeouts again when he faces the Tigers, who are tied for the fourth-most strikeouts in baseball. They also have just a .656 OPS against left-handed pitchers, which means that Ragans could pitch deep into this matchup. Don't be surprised if he comes away with another double-digit strikeout performance.
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Houston Astros 
vs. San Diego Padres 
Picks
- Jose Altuve over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI (-160) at DraftKings Sportsbook for 1 Unit
It has been a rough offensive start for the Astros, who have the fourth-worst OPS in baseball. They have only scored 66 runs across 18 games. They have several slumping hitters, but Altuve is not one of them. He enters Friday batting .311 with a .341 wOBA. His hard-hit rate of 36.7% is above his career mark of 32.0%.
Altuve will have a favorable matchup against Kyle Hart, who pitched in the KBO last year. While he logged six shutout innings against the Rockies in his last start, they have one of the worst lineups in baseball. In his two previous starts, Hart allowed a combined seven runs over 5.2 innings to the Guardians and Cubs. Altuve had a .418 wOBA against left-handed pitchers last season. He also posted a .364 wOBA at home. There is some juice on this over, but I'll happily pay it.
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Cleveland Guardians 
at Pittsburgh Pirates 
Picks
- Luis L. Ortiz over 4.5 strikeouts (-120) at FanDuel Sportsbook for 1 Unit
Ortiz doesn't miss a ton of bats. Last season, he finished with a 19.2% strikeout rate. However, he did finish on a hot streak in that department, recording at least five strikeouts in six of his final seven outings. After registering just five total strikeouts over his first two starts this year, Ortiz had 10 strikeouts over 5.2 innings against the Royals in his last outing.
The Pirates have struggled at the plate, posting the third-worst OPS in baseball. Part of the season is that they are tied for the fourth-most strikeouts. The last three starters to face the Pirates were Jake Irvin, Mitchell Parker and Trevor Williams. None of them has a career strikeout rate above 19.9%, but they all finished with at least five strikeouts against the Pirates. Ortiz has the potential to also reach that threshold.
MLB Player Prop Picks Recap
- Cole Ragans over 7.5 strikeouts (-115) at DraftKings Sportsbook for 1 Unit
- Jose Altuve over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI (-160) at DraftKings Sportsbook for 1 Unit
- Luis L. Ortiz over 4.5 strikeouts (-120) at FanDuel Sportsbook for 1 Unit
