Today is the smallest slate since the second day of the season, but that does not mean we can ignore the player prop market. Cole Irvin pitches against his former team, which again sees itself at the bottom of the league. Irvin headlines the top MLB player prop bet on Thursday.
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Best MLB Player Prop Bet | Cole Irvin O/U 6.5 Hits Allowed
Cole Irvin has hopped around the league plenty since he made his major league debut in 2019 with the Philadelphia Phillies. He spent two years in Philadelphia then signed back-to-back one-year deals with the Oakland Athletics. After two solid years of being a staple in the A’s rotation, Irvin was traded to the Baltimore Orioles this past offseason. To start today’s MLB slate, Irvin will battle his former team for bragging rights.
MLB player prop bettors made sure to back Irvin whenever he was at home last season. His 3.07 home ERA made him one of the Athletics’ best arms. His 5.26 road ERA, on the other hand, was pitiful. Luckily, Irvin will be in front of the Orioles faithful today. In his first start at home, Irvin allowed only four hits to a stacked New York Yankees lineup. A big contributor to that was how many deep counts he fell into. He walked four Yankees batters, which rode his pitch count to 101 in less than five innings. Oakland walks at the ninth-highest rate against left-handed pitchers but ranks in the middle of the pack in batting average.
Irvin does not have a ton to worry about with the starting nine for Oakland. The middle of the order, led by Jesus Aguilar, is one Irvin can pitch around if needed. Hitters 5 through 9 for the Athletics are hitting a combined .119 against left-handed pitching and have yet to see Irvin. Advantage Irvin backers.
Irvin has stayed under this line in 15 of 17 home games since last season and will have extra motivation to dominate his former team that traded him for a prospect in the offseason.
Best MLB Player Prop: Cole Irvin UNDER 6.5 Hits Allowed -150 (DraftKings)
