With all of the playoff teams locked in and division races decided, there isn’t much for MLB teams to play for entering the last two days of the season. This article will provide a four-player strikeout player prop for the 15 games this evening in hopes to get another parlay victory before ending the MLB regular season. It will use the OddsShopper MLB Parlay Builder paired with the Stokastic MLB projections to make the best MLB picks and parlays today.
MLB Picks and Parlays Today 10/4
Eduardo Rodriguez O/U 3.5 Strikeouts
Despite the Detroit Tigers being eliminated from playoff contention early in September, they have won 9 of their last 10 games, including a victory over the Seattle Mariners on the road last night. The Tigers will send Eduardo Rodriguez to the mound in hopes to continue their momentum as this season comes to a close. In his first year with the Tigers, Rodriguez has a decent 5-5 record with a 4.02 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. He has won back-to-back starts, allowing zero earned runs in his most recent start. Rodriguez dealt with an injury in the middle of the season, but now that he is fully healthy, his pitch count is a non-issue.
Getting over this really small strikeout prop line shouldn’t be a problem, as Rodriguez has four or more strikeouts in 9 of his 16 starts this season. Stokastic projects Rodriguez for 4.4 strikeouts in this matchup against the Mariners tonight, which is nearly an entire strikeout more than the prop line. Look for Rodriguez to keep his momentum going against a Mariners team that has already clinched a playoff berth and locked up a Wild Card spot.
Best MLB Pick Today: Eduardo Rodriguez OVER 3.5 Strikeouts (-160)
Braxton Garrett O/U 4.5 Strikeouts
The Miami Marlins have bounced left-handed starter Braxton Garrett between the minor leagues and the major leagues for the past three seasons. He has started a career-high 16 games this season, but those starts have been very sporadic. Garrett has made three starts in a row, but he has yet to top 80 pitches in any of them. That alone is a driving force for this under strikeout prop.
Getting to five strikeouts is a tough sell when Garrett has only done that once in his last five starts. Not only that, but this matchup against the Atlanta Braves is very difficult. In his 16 starts this season, Garrett has one where he faced the Braves, which came in the middle of August. During that start, he allowed zero earned runs through six innings but was only able to accumulate two strikeouts.
Garrett is a home underdog tonight, and the Braves are implied for 4.6 runs. With the extremely low pitch count and tough matchup, take the under on Garrett’s strikeout prop with confidence tonight. The Braves may have clinched the National League East, but their projected lineup is still loaded with talent as they look to keep the wins coming going into the playoffs.
Best MLB Pick Today: Braxton Garrett UNDER 4.5 Strikeouts (-120)
Cal Quantrill O/U 4.5 Strikeouts
The Cleveland Guardians and Kansas City Royals continue their massive six-game series to end the regular season. These two teams have split the series 2-2, and the Guardians will start Cal Quantrill, who leads the team in wins with 14. It has been a great season in the win column for Quantrill, who has a respectable 3.42 ERA and 1.22 WHIP.
However, where Quantrill struggles the most is generating strikeouts. In his fourth season in the major leagues, Quantrill has a career-low 16.5% strikeout rate. Similar to Garrett, this is a strikeout prop that seems a little far-fetched for Quantrill the way he has pitched all season. In his 31 starts, Quantrill has generated five of more strikeouts in only eight games.
The Royals are not a great team by any means, but they generally don’t strike out. They rank 23rd in strikeout rate this year, and Quantrill has averaged 3.5 strikeouts per game against them in two starts. Stokastic projects Quantrill for 4.1 strikeouts in this matchup, which is a safe bet. He has also thrown under 90 pitches in back-to-back starts, and with the Guardians already locking up a playoff spot, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he threw under 90 pitches again tonight.
Best MLB Pick Today: Cal Quantrill UNDER 4.5 Strikeouts (-125)
Cole Irvin O/U 4.5 Strikeouts
In a matchup with two teams already eliminated from playoff contention, the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Angels are tied for the lowest total on the slate at seven runs. The Athletics will start their ace Cole Irvin, who leads the team in wins, strikeouts, ERA and innings this season. To be honest, no other Athletics starter is even close.
Irvin faced the Angels in his most recent start, and even though he took the loss and only pitched four innings, he was still able to strike out five. It is not too hard to strike out this Angels team that leads the league in strikeout rate (25.9%). This is Irvin’s fifth start against the Angels this season. In his four previous starts, he averaged five strikeouts per game. He may not pitch deep into this game either, but Irvin should be able to rack up enough strikeouts to get over this prop line with ease. Don’t be intimidated by Irvin’s 17.2% strikeout rate, as this is as good of a strikeout matchup as there is in the league this season.
Best MLB Pick Today: Cole Irvin OVER 4.5 Strikeouts (-125)
