Best MLB Player Prop Picks for Friday, July 21st, Including Strikeout Props for Ranger Suarez & Johan Oviedo

• MLB player props are available for Friday’s MLB betting slate.
• Ranger Suarez has gone over 3.5 strikeouts in 10 of 12 starts this year.
• Check out the best MLB player prop picks for July 21st, below

After a lighter slate on Thursday, Friday’s MLB betting slate features a full slate of games for us to find MLB player props to hammer.

Luckily for us, I found the best plays you’ll see, starting with Ranger Suarez to record 4+ strikeouts against the Guardians.

Despite not being known as a huge strikeout pitcher, Suarez has been mowing folks down this year. He had a stretch in June where in four straight starts he recorded 8, 7, 7 and 8 strikeouts. For Friday, all we’re asking for is four.

Odds as of July 16 at FanDuel. Get this FanDuel promo code to bet on Friday’s best MLB player props. 

MLB Player Prop #1: Ranger Suarez Over 3.5 Strikeouts

Suarez is somewhat of a folk hero in Philadelphia, as he closed out the NLCS against the Padres this past playoff run. This year, after a slow start, he had a dominant stretch in June that saw him go five straight starts giving up one or fewer runs.

The reason why this over 3.5 strikeout number is a play, though, is because he can be relied upon to pitch deep into games.  As mentioned above, he had a rough start to the year. But, since his third start this year in which he got shelled, he has pitched over 5 innings in every single start since, for a total of 9 straight.

Ranger Suarez’s 12 Starts in 2023

Even in those first three games in which he got rocked, he still struck out four or more batters. The thing to keep in mind here, is that you don’t need to be a Spencer Strider type of pitcher to get to four strikeouts when you pitch deep into games, and that is the guess for how Friday’s game will go.

The Guardians struggle against left-handed pitching, with the fourth-worst WRC+, the sixth-lowest ISO rate, and the fourth-lowest wOBA specifically against lefties. Power Ranger Suarez should be able to pitch into the seventh inning here, and if he does he is extremely likely to get us to four strikeouts.

Pick: Ranger Suarez Over 3.5 Strikeouts (-116)

MLB Player Prop #2: Johan Oviedo Under 6.5 Strikeouts

Next up, let’s go with an under and fade Oviedo after he had a career start his last time on the mound. Despite being a below-average strikeout pitcher, Oviedo struck out the Giants 10 times in his last outing. So, because of that, his strikeout prop is at an inflated 6.5 for his next start against the Angels. He did pitch an immaculate inning last year, which admittedly is pretty awesome, but fading him is still the right play here.

Johan Oviedo just tossed an immaculate inning 😱

He's the second Pirates' pitcher to do so this year 😤

(via @MLB) pic.twitter.com/9IKiwLCYfw

— FanDuel (@FanDuel) May 24, 2023

Even including his last start, Oviedo has only recorded 7 or more strikeouts in 4 of 19 starts this year. The Giants also strikeout the fourth-most in the MLB, while the Angels are down at 11th.

To further illustrate why this number is too high, Oviedo has a strikeout % of 20.4%. Suarez, who let’s not forget has his over/under set at 3.5, has a strikeout rate above this number at 21.5%. It is also not as likely that Oviedo pitches deep into the game, as the Angels have the fourth-best WRC+ in the MLB against righties.

Even if you isolate to the last two weeks specifically to take into account the injury to Mike Trout, the Angels are still the fifth-best offense in the MLB.

Pick: Johan Oviedo Under 6.5 Strikeouts (+100)