If you are looking for the top MLB Best Bets and Prop Bets for today, Fantasy Alarm has everything you need for every sport. Friday’s MLB schedule offers us a fantastic slate of games from which to choose. 

 

 

 

We have one afternoon game – Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Chicago Cubs – that features Pirates’ top prospect Paul Skenes against a very hittable Kyle Hendricks. Then the rest of the action doesn’t start up until 6:40 pm ET, so while we attack the Vegas odds and lines early, we also have plenty of time throughout the day to catch any breaking MLB news and potential MLB lineup changes to find some additional value.

MLB Picks, Predictions, & Best Bets Today, 5/17 

It has been a strong week for my MLB predictions and Friday affords us a tremendous opportunity to break things open even more. Heading into the weekend on a high note is always important for me as I tend to play very lightly over the weekend with the heavy lean on day games. 

Sure, MLB players are used to the weekend daylight action, but I tend to favor the mid-week slates and the night games. As I’ve always said, you have to focus your betting on where you are most comfortable. So, let's dive into our favorite MLB best bets today.

  • Season Record: 134-106-3
  • Bankroll: +16.33 units

*Each of my MLB picks will have the corresponding odds listed beside them.

 

 

 

Pirates vs. Cubs Prediction: Friday, May 17 

While I don’t normally go for the day games on a full slate like this, we have two teams and two pitchers who just faced each other in their last outings. The reason I like it, though, is that Paul Skenes is clearly the best pitcher and now that he’s had his MLB debut, he’s going to be dialed in against a Cubs team that has been good recently but has had its struggles against righthanded pitching, most notably a 23.7-percent strikeout rate. 

I think Skenes does a good job of stifling the Cubs bats, at least early on in this game. On the other side, the Cubs are throwing Kyle Hendricks, a pitcher we love to target against. Yes, he had a strong showing against these Pirates his last time out, but we know exactly who Hendricks is and how many hits and runs he typically allows these days. 

The Pirates have a .330 wOBA over their last seven games and Hendricks, even after last week’s strong effort, is posting an ERA just north of 10.00 and a WHIP just under 2.00. The universe balances today and the Pirates offense shines in the first of my MLB predictions today.  

 

 

 

Mets vs. Marlins Prediction: Friday, May 17

We have two very effective pitchers today in both Christian Scott and Jesus Luzardo and we have two very mediocre (at best) offenses in the Mets and Marlins. 

In fact, over the past seven days, the Mets have posted a .256 wOBA with a 22.5-percent strikeout rate while the Marlins have a .279 wOBA and an even more brutal 25.6-percent strikeout rate. Both pitchers should do well in this matchup, so we’re going to bet against the offenses. 

 

 

 

Angels vs. Rangers Prediction: Friday, May 17 

Finalizing today’s MLB picks is an interesting matchup here as both pitchers – Andrew Heaney and Tyler Anderson – are extremely hittable but have performed reasonably well in each of their last few starts. Anderson has two quality starts in his last three outings while Heaney has been even stronger, allowing just four earned runs over his last three starts (18 innings).

Of course, those games did come against some bottom-feeders in Colorado, Oakland, and Washington. But despite some of the Rangers’ struggles against lefthanded pitching, I am still favoring the offenses. Neither hurler has impressed me enough to think the score stays down, but both bullpens have been absolutely atrocious over the last week. 

Over these last seven days, the Rangers bullpen has posted a league-worst 8.35 ERA while the Angels have a 6.05 ERA over the same time span. We may sweat this one out a bit, but we should hit everything by the time it’s all over.  

 

 

 

Best MLB Props For Today, 5/17 

We’ll start here for the morning but keep a VERY close eye on this article and the Fantasy Alarm Discord throughout the day as I am sure I will have more MLB props for us to play.