Player props have become one of baseball’s most entertaining ways to bet, offering value well beyond the moneyline, run line, or game total. Each day, this column highlights the best opportunities on the board — from strikeouts and hits to total bases and pitcher outs recorded — using matchup data, recent form, and betting trends to identify edges. Keep reading for the top MLB player prop picks for May 17. Also, make sure you check out our live VSiN programming for more. Our hosts and analysts will be all over the MLB, which is why it pays to be a VSiN Pro subscriber.
MORE: Check out the VSiN Pro Picks page for more bets from our talented hosts and analysts!
Sunday Player Prop Best Bets
Below you’ll find my official plays on the player prop market for Sunday. These are the ones that make the VSiN Pro Picks page and count towards my season-long record. On Saturdays and Sundays, I’m going to keep these much shorter to cut down on my workload a little.
Jack Flaherty Over 4.5 Strikeouts (-126) vs. Blue Jays
Blue Jays at Tigers – 1:40 pm ET
This has been an up-and-down season for Flaherty, but 4.5 is a low bar to clear when looking at strikeouts. Of course, Toronto is at the bottom of the league when looking at strikeout rate (18.2%), so this team has been good about avoiding Ks. That’s nothing new when looking at the last few years. But Flaherty has had at least six strikeouts four times this season. We only need five here.
Ben Rice Over 1.5 Hits + Runs + RBIs (-115) vs. Mets
Yankees at Mets – 1:40 pm ET
The Mets have Freddy Peralta on the hill today, so they have a dangerous righty going. Still, it’s hard not to like Rice at such a reasonable number to go Over 1.5 hits, runs, and RBIs (HRR). This season, the Yankees’ newest star is averaging 2.9 HRR per game when facing right-handed pitching.
Roki Sasaki Over 5.5 Strikeouts (+125) vs. Angels
Dodgers at Angels – 4:07 pm ET
Sasaki has only had one start this season in which he has had at least six strikeouts, but I’ll take my chances with him adding a second at +125. The Angels have the highest strikeout rate in baseball this year, sitting there with a 25.8% mark. This is a strong matchup for Sasaki to go out there and miss some bats.
Additional Picks
Drew Rasmussen Over 5.5 Strikeouts (+110) vs. Marlins
Brayan Bello Over 3.5 Strikeouts (-125 – 1.5 units) & Alt Strikeouts 5+ (+180 – 0.5 units) & Alt Strikeouts 6+ (+456 – 0.25 units) vs. Braves
Tristan Peters Over 0.5 Total Bases (-125) vs. Cubs
Bailey Ober Over 3.5 Strikeouts (-160) vs. Brewers
Stephen Kolek Over 17.5 Outs Recorded (-107) vs. Cardinals
Corbin Carroll Over 1.5 Total Bases (-125) vs. Rockies
Jeffrey Springs Over 4.5 Strikeouts (-115) vs. Giants
Noteworthy OptaAI Player Prop Edges
Check out the BRAND NEW OptaAI Player Props MLB pages for more of these! VSiN Pro subscribers can find 50+ player prop ideas on a daily basis! We’ll list the top edges in some of the biggest markets below, but there will always be a lot more to uncover on the pages themselves.
Luke Raley Over 0.5 Hits + Runs + RBIs (-145) vs. Padres
Our OptaAI player prop projections have him going for 2.05 hits, runs, and RBIs, suggesting these odds should be -677 — a +28.0% edge to the Over.
James Outman Over 0.5 Hits + Runs + RBIs (-135) vs. Brewers
Our OptaAI player prop projections have him finishing with 1.62 hits, runs, and RBIs, suggesting these odds should be -405 — a +22.8% edge to the Over.
Carlos Narvaez Over 0.5 Hits + Runs + RBIs (-139) vs. Braves
Our OptaAI player prop projections have him projected for 1.57 hits, runs, and RBIs, suggesting these odds should be -378 — a +20.9% edge to the Over.
