Coming off a 2-1 Thursday in strikeout props, we're looking to close the week with back-to-back winning days. Here are our three favorite K props for Friday's loaded MLB slate.
Diamondbacks at Orioles, 7:05 p.m. ET
Cole Irvin doesn't need to rack up a ton of strikeouts to be effective. The Baltimore Orioles starter has a 2.86 ERA this year and hasn't given up an earned run in three straight starts, but he ranks dead last among 122 qualified pitchers in whiff rate. He's been successful at pitching to contact and forcing a ton of ground balls, but that may not work against an Arizona Diamondbacks lineup that has the highest batting average and OPS against left-handed pitching. The D-backs also have the third-lowest strikeout rate in MLB this season, and Irvin has gone under 3.5 Ks in both of his matchups against top-five K-rate teams.
Athletics at Mariners, 9:40 p.m. ET
Bryan Woo will be making his season debut on Friday night coming off an elbow injury, and he gets to ease back into the rotation against an Oakland Athletics lineup that has the fourth-highest strikeout rate (29.2 percent) and the third-lowest batting average (.219) against right-handed pitching. Woo struck out 17 batters in 11.1 innings of work at Triple-A Tacoma, and he has a 36.8 percent K rate against current Athletics hitters. As long as the Seattle Mariners give Woo a full workload, he'll have a good chance to cash this over.
Twins at Blue Jays, 7:07 p.m. ET
Joe Ryan started the year off hot with 38 strikeouts over his first five appearances, but he's gone under 5.5 Ks in two straight starts against the Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox, two strikeout-prone teams. Now he has to face a Toronto Blue Jays lineup that has the third-lowest whiff rate, the fourth-lowest chase rate and the third-highest chase contact rate in MLB. Ryan has a strikeout rate of only 15.4 percent against current Blue Jays hitters, and he's trending in the wrong direction right now.
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