The 2023 MLB Trade Deadline has passed, and what a crazy day it was yesterday. We had Justin Verlander and others getting traded, as well as Houston Astros southpaw Framber Valdez throwing a no-hitter! While it was a rough day for our picks in the MLB player prop world yesterday, it’s behind us, and now we look to today’s slate. My MLB best bets of the day on Underdog Fantasy feature New York Mets pitcher Kodai Senga against the Kansas City Royals, Baltimore Orioles pitcher Grayson Rodriguez against the Toronto Blue Jays, and Freddie Freeman powering the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Oakland Athletics. Don't forget to check out the latest MLB weather report and the confirmed MLB lineups when placing those MLB betting picks, and our MLB daily projections and MLB Batter vs Pitcher page will help uncover the best matchups for MLB player props and your MLB DFS lineups. Let's dive into the top MLB player picks on Underdog Fantasy for Wednesday, August 2nd.

 

MLB Underdog Fantasy Top Picks August 2

Kodai Senga, New York Mets – LOWER than 2.5 Earned Runs Allowed

Yes, Senga’s 4.07 road ERA is not as sparkly and nice as his 2.40 ERA at home. However, he’s allowed just five earned runs over his last four starts on the road, covering 23.2 IP. Over his last six starts overall, three of which have come on the road, he has a 2.41 ERA, 2.83 FIP, and 3.36 xFIP, not to mention the fact that he has allowed two or fewer earned runs in each of those six starts. In the month of July, the Royals are hitting .244 with a .298 wOBA against right-handed pitching, and the biggest thing is that the Royals do not walk, which should help limit some of the self-inflicted damage Senga tends to impose on himself. In 12 starts this year where he has allowed three or fewer walks, he’s held the opposition under three earned runs in 10 of those contests.

Grayson Rodriguez, Baltimore Orioles – HIGHER than 4.5 Strikeouts

After a rough first taste of the bigs, the Orioles sent Rodriguez back down to Triple-A, and he found his groove. He absolutely dominated, racking up strikeouts in bunches, including three double-digit strikeout performances in seven starts. Since returning to the big league club, he’s had at least four strikeouts in each game, but the upside is there. Take a look below at some of the numbers that can help indicate strikeout potential or upside, from the start of the year to the last three outings:

 

First 10 Starts

Last 3 Starts

O-Swing%

30.0%

35.4%

Contact%

76.4%

72.9%

SwStr%

10.9%

13.5%

 

Toronto is about league average here in July in terms of strikeout rate against right-handed pitching, but this is a low bar for a very talented young arm, who has looked much improved since returning to the big league rotation.

Freddie Freeman, Los Angeles Dodgers – HIGHER than 0.5 Singles

Hogan Harris has an even 6.00 ERA as a starter this season (27 IP), and he’s served up a .256 batting average to left-handed hitters. Righties have posted a higher SLG than left-handed hitters, but lefties have the upper hand in the batting average department. Freeman has a .325 average against left-handed hitters this season, and he’s hit safely in nine of his last 10 games, posting a .463 average during that stretch. Tonight, we just need one single, and 13 of his last 19 base hits have been singles. Freeman has notched a single in seven of his last 10 games, and Harris has only allowed a .359 SLG (2 XBH) to left-handed hitters this season. 

 
 

MLB Best Bets

If you are looking for some MLB Best Bets today, check out our MLB betting picks for today's slate of games.

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