3 MLB Strikeout Props to Back on August 23: Sánchez, Martinez, McLean All Set Up to Cash

Sunday’s MLB slate is loaded with strikeout upside, and three starters in particular look primed to blow past their strikeout totals. Cristopher Sánchez is in the middle of a Cy Young-caliber season for the Phillies, Nick Martinez has quietly turned into one of the more reliable swing-and-miss arms in the Rays’ rotation, and Nolan McLean has been a strikeout machine for the Mets all summer. All three get matchups that set up in their favor.

Here’s why we like the over on strikeouts for all three arms today, and how to build your betting slip around them.

Cristopher Sánchez Should Handle the Cardinals Lineup

Sánchez takes the mound for Philadelphia at 1:35 PM against St. Louis sitting on a 16-4 record and a sparkling 2.51 ERA, with 187 strikeouts already banked on the season. That’s a strikeout-per-game average north of seven, and he’s coming off a run of dominant starts that has him firmly in the National League Cy Young conversation.

The matchup only sweetens the pot. Sánchez has posted a strong career strikeout rate against the current Cardinals roster — right around 38% for his career versus the hitters St. Louis is likely to trot out today. That’s an elite number against any lineup, let alone one that ranks in the middle of the pack offensively. Sánchez’s changeup has been nearly unhittable for lefties and righties alike this year, and Cardinals hitters have chased it out of the zone at a high clip in past meetings.

Set your sportsbook to the strikeout market and look for Sánchez over 6.5 Ks — check your book for the exact number and price, since lines can move slightly leading up to first pitch. Given his season average is comfortably above that mark, this is one of the safer strikeout plays on the board today.

Nick Martinez Has Been Piling Up Strikeouts Against the AL East

Martinez gets the ball for Tampa Bay against Baltimore, also at 1:35 PM, and he’s been one of the better stories in the Rays’ rotation this year. He’s 12-4 with a 3.05 ERA and 83 strikeouts on the season, and the more relevant number for today’s bet is his recent form: Martinez has racked up four-plus strikeouts in four of his last five starts.

That consistency matters. Martinez isn’t a pure power arm, but he mixes his pitches well enough to generate consistent swing-and-miss, and he’s shown he can get through an Orioles lineup that has had stretches of striking out at an above-average rate against pitchers who change speeds and locations the way he does. The four-of-five trend over his last month of starts is exactly the kind of recent-form signal that makes an over on his strikeout total appealing today.

Look for Martinez’s strikeout prop on your sportsbook of choice — with his recent workload trending up and a lineup that has had trouble picking up his off-speed stuff, the over feels like the right side.

Nolan McLean’s Stuff Plays Up Against a Rebuilding White Sox Lineup

McLean draws a 2:10 PM start for the Mets against a Chicago White Sox lineup that’s been overmatched by good pitching for most of the season. On the year, McLean is 9-8 with a 3.34 ERA and 162 strikeouts — a strikeout-per-nine rate that places him among the more prolific swing-and-miss starters in the National League.

The White Sox have leaned young and inexperienced offensively for stretches of this season, which is exactly the type of lineup that lets a swing-and-miss starter like McLean rack up strikeouts in bunches. His raw stuff — a mid-90s fastball paired with a slider that misses bats — has translated into strikeout totals that regularly clear the six-strikeout mark, and today’s matchup gives him a lineup that’s had trouble catching up to that kind of velocity-and-break combination all year.

Check your sportsbook for the current line on McLean’s strikeout total; given his season pace and the quality of opponent, betting the over gives you a real shot at cashing on all three of today’s strikeout plays.

Lock These In

All three of today’s starters carry strikeout numbers that support betting the over, and each gets a matchup that plays to his strengths. Here’s the full slate:

• Cristopher Sánchez (PHI) — Over 6.5 Strikeouts vs. Cardinals
• Nick Martinez (TB) — Over 4.5 Strikeouts vs. Orioles
• Nolan McLean (NYM) — Over 5.5 Strikeouts vs. White Sox

Confirm the current lines and prices at your live MLB odds hub before locking anything in, since strikeout props can shift right up until first pitch.