Shohei Ohtani prop odds and best bet for Angels vs. Athletics, April 27
Los Angeles Angels stud Shohei Ohtani will get the ball for today’s game against the Oakland Athletics, opening up his prop markets as a result of his two-way play.
The pregame narrative: Ohtani dominated the A’s on Opening Day and he has hit pretty well against them this season. There are a number of worthy props to target for this series finale at Angel Stadium.
Ohtani odds markets
MLB odds as of 12:31 p.m. ET on 04/27/2023.
Ohtani game analysis
There are many ways to wager on Ohtani today, as his pitching assignment leads to a flood of available betting markets.
While Ohtani’s bat has only been solid, yet well-above league average, through 24 games, he has been dominant on the mound. And that’s despite a 14.3% walk rate, which is the second-highest mark in the American League.
Oakland will send lefty JP Sears to the mound today and while Ohtani has handled left-handers fine this season, he unsurprisingly fared better against righties over a much larger sample in 2022. The same goes for his career, where his platoon split shows a difference of nearly 100 points in OPS.
Not that we think Ohtani is fade-worthy versus an unimposing Sears, but our best bet for him today will focus on what he can do on the mound.
Ohtani best bet
Best Bet: Ohtani over 18.5 recorded (+128)
The flamethrower has been downright nasty. His whiff rate is in the 93rd percentile, his strikeout rate is 95th percentile and his expected batting average against is in the 98th percentile.
Batters have hit .092 against him and he hasn’t allowed more than three hits in a start. That batting average against is the lowest mark among starters, his 0.64 ERA is second, his 36.2% K rate is third and he hasn’t allowed a home run.
Ohtani didn’t throw more than 100 pitches in any of his first nine starts last season but has done so in more than 50% of his outings since (not including two starts ago when he was limited due to bad weather).
We’re hoping the larger workload helps cover for his potential wildness and still allows him to get deeper into the game. He has topped 18.5 outs twice this season and recorded 18 outs in two other starts.
The A’s strike out well above the league-average rate against righties and Ohtani punched out 10 in his Opening Day start versus Oakland.
On top of that, here’s how Oakland’s offence ranks among the 30 MLB teams.
This is simply a weak-hitting club, making the plus-money value on this prop worth a shot.
As long as Ohtani shows better control — like in his last start when he walked two over seven innings — we like his chances of clearing this number for a nice payout.
