3 Best MLB Strikeout Prop Bets for Thursday 4/17/25

Within a given MLB slate, there are tons of strikeout props to sort through as there are lines posted for most of the day's starting pitchers.

Across today's action, which seem to present the best value in FanDuel Sportsbook's MLB betting odds?

We're going to dig into that today, laying out my favorite strikeout props across all the action. You can also do some research of your own by digging into our MLB player prop projections.

Please note lines and MLB projections are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published. All MLB odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook. All stats come from FanGraphs and Baseball Savant unless noted otherwise.

Today's Best MLB K Props

Kumar Rocker Under 4.5 Strikeouts (-116)

As fun as it is to see Kumar Rocker in the big leagues, the Texas Rangers aren't giving him enough leash for me to be in line with market here.

In Rocker's three starts this year, he has gone -- in order -- 74, 77, and 68 pitches. Two of those were due to ineffectiveness, but that's also not necessarily ideal. In his one clean start, he was yanked after five innings at 77 pitches.

This does seem intentional. Rocker threw just 36 2/3 innings last year as he worked his way back from Tommy John surgery. Thus, there's likely a pretty hard cap on how many innings he can throw across the entirety of the season. They don't want to blow that entire allocation in April.

Because of this, I've got Rocker projected at just 4.18 strikeouts, low enough for us to back the under.

Griffin Canning Under 4.5 Strikeouts (-120)

Griffin Canning is coming off an illness that required him to be scratched yesterday, presenting some downside risk in his expectations for tonight.

There are a couple other factors that make the under enticing. One is a matchup with the St. Louis Cardinals, whose active roster has a 20.5% strikeout rate against righties since the start of last year. They're at 17.4% in a small sample this year.

The second factor is that Canning's strikeouts have generally been down the past two seasons. He finished last year with a 17.6% strikeout rate, a number that has rebounded to 20.0% through three starts this year.

I have Canning's baseline projection a bit above that number due to what he did pre-2024. Still, even with that, I have him projected at 4.10 strikeouts tonight. That's without dinging him much for the illness, which does give me more confidence in backing the under.

Tomoyuki Sugano Over 3.5 Strikeouts (+124)

Here, we've got a pitcher who has five strikeouts through three starts facing a low-strikeout opponent.

Sounds like a great recipe for an over, right?

In this instance, the answer for me is yes because the market is so low.

Tomoyuki Sugano's first three MLB starts have seen him post an 8.1% strikeout rate with a 6.8% swinging-strike rate. That's well below expectations, even for a pitcher who didn't get many strikeouts in Japan.

Sugano did, though, generate whiffs this spring with a 12.1% swinging-strike rate and 25.4% strikeout rate. While regular-season data matters more, strikeout rate stabilizes quickly, so I do put at least some stock in what we saw in the spring.

As for the opposing Cleveland Guardians, they're not as much of a deterrent to K props as they used to be. The active roster has a 21.7% strikeout rate against righties this year. That's up 1.7 percentage points from their team-wide mark in 2024.

Add it together, and I have Sugano projected for 3.56 strikeouts. Pitchers in that range for me have gone over 3.5 strikeouts 49.4% of the time, implying there's value at +124.

New to FanDuel Sportsbook? You’ll receive $250 in Bonus Bets if your first $5+ bet wins! See here for full terms and conditions. Learn about today’s other offers at FanDuel Sportsbook Promos.

Which strikeout props stand out to you today? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook's MLB betting odds to see the full menu of options.

Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook and FanDuel Daily Fantasy today!

The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.