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Best MLB Player Props Today: Jeffers, Buxton Home Run Picks
Vices Best MLB Player Props Today: Jeffers, Buxton Home Run Picks By Josh Shepardson ,
Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Josh Shepardson is a sports betting analyst, focused on player props. Follow Author Aug 24, 2026, 01:54am EDT --:-- / --:-- This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more . Samuel Basallo and Nathaniel Lowe didn’t hit home runs on Friday. Sadly, that means the MLB best home run props have fallen to a 20-79 record, with three no-bets.
The home run bets have spent nearly the entire year in the black. After getting both picks wrong on Friday, profits disappeared. Anyone who has bet $100 on each of the suggested home run props has lost $50.
It’s a disappointing outcome for spending all season grinding the data. Nevertheless, it’s part of the betting game. Home run props are also long-shot wagers, and most won’t cash. That said, getting just a few right can generate sizable profits, and there’s time to right the ship and generate a profit on the home run bets for the 2026 MLB season.
Turning things around can start tonight with two teammates in a drool-inducing matchup and a homer-friendly ballpark. Their home run props are admittedly chalky, but they offer enough value to bet when factoring in their numbers and the conditions tonight.
Over 0.5 Home Runs (+370) at FanDuel Sportsbook
Ryan Jeffers won’t be confused with MLB’s elite power hitters, but he’s hit 10 home runs in 67 games and 267 plate appearances this year. The veteran catcher has hit two home runs with a 23.1% line-drive rate, 43.1% fly-ball rate, 41.5% hard-hit rate, 91.4 mph average exit velocity, 21.2-degree launch angle and 9.2% barrel rate against southpaws this season. He has also hit 13 home runs in 384 plate appearances against lefties since 2024.
Jeffers’ overall batted-ball quality is rock-solid this year, too. Among 453 batters with at least 50 batted-ball events this year , Jeffers is tied for 59th in barrels per plate appearance rate (7.8%), tied for 83rd in barrels per batted-ball event rate (11.3%), tied for 195th in hard-hit rate (40.4%), tied for 95th in fly-ball and line-drive exit velocity (94.5 mph) and tied for 190th in launch-angle sweet-spot rate (34.4%).
Jeffers has an outstanding matchup and park factors for tapping into his homer power tonight. Jeffrey Springs has 2.30 home runs allowed per nine innings (HR/9) this year, the most among today’s probable starting pitchers .
Springs has yielded 29 home runs in 23 starts this year, allowing one in back-to-back starts, 13 of his last 14 and 17 of 23. The lefty has allowed multiple home runs in eight starts. The 33-year-old lefty has been most homer-prone with the platoon disadvantage and at home, allowing 21 homers to righties, 17 at home and 11 at home to right-handed batters.
Springs’ struggles to keep the ball in the yard at home shouldn’t come as a surprise. Sutter Health Park’s 123 park factor for home runs ranks as the second-highest mark since 2025. Jeffers can crack a home run tonight.
Over 0.5 Home Runs (+234) at DraftKings Sportsbook
The matchup and park factors at Sutter Health Park aren’t just favorable for Jeffers. So, doubling up on right-handed power hitters is appealing. Byron Buxton has smashed 25 home runs in 91 games and 399 plate appearances this season.
Additionally, the power-packed outfielder has blistering batted-ball data. Among 246 qualified hitters in 2026, Buxton is third in barrels per plate appearance rate (10.9%), ninth in barrels per batted-ball event rate (16.2%), tied for 45th in hard-hit rate (46.8%), tied for 45th in fly-ball and line-drive exit velocity (95.4 mph), tied for 81st in maximum exit velocity (111.9 mph), tied for 178th in launch-angle sweet-spot rate (32.1%) and has the 18th-steepest launch angle (20.6 degrees).
Buxton has launched 17 homers against lefties since 2024, with a 21.6% line-drive rate, 50.2% fly-ball rate, 14.9% home run per fly-ball rate (HR/FB), 48.0% pull rate and 40.5% hard-hit rate. His power and propensity to put the ball in the air should result in a home run tonight against Springs or a reliever at homer-friendly Sutter Health Park.
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