The Cleveland Guardians look to extend their winning streak and remain in the thick of the wild card race as they visit the American League Central-leading Detroit Tigers for the finale of their three-game series at 1:10 p.m. ET on Thursday at Comerica Park. Cleveland (80-71), which has won six straight contests and 11 of its last 12, is 2 1/2 games out of a wild card spot and trails Detroit (85-67) for first place in the division following Wednesday’s 4-0 victory.

Bo Naylor delivered a two-run single while Gavin Williams combined with five relievers on a four-hitter for the Guardians, who have won seven of their last eight at Comerica Park dating back to last season. Naylor also drove in a run in Tuesday’s series-opening 7-5 triumph in extra innings and has collected six RBI over his past three games.

Tanner Bibee (10-11, 4.44 ERA) aims for another strong performance when he takes the mound for Cleveland on Thursday. The 26-year-old right-hander is coming off a two-hit shutout against the Chicago White Sox in which he matched his season high with 10 strikeouts, and he fanned eight batters while tossing seven scoreless innings in a win at Detroit back in May.

The Tigers counter with reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal (13-5, 2.26), who hasn’t lost to Cleveland since 2021. The 28-year-old left-hander yielded four runs over 3 1/3 innings in a loss to the Miami Marlins last time out but has been stupendous against the Guardians this year, registering 23 strikeouts across 16 scoreless frames in two turns – including a two-hit shutout on May 25. Skubal is 3-0 with 46 strikeouts over 41 innings in his last six outings versus Cleveland.

Top sportsbooks have set the total strikeouts props for Skubal at 7.5 (Over +103, Under -136) and Bibee at 5.5 (Over +105, Under -139). The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every MLB game 10,000 times, rates Bibee’s Over 5.5 strikeouts prop as a 3.5-star play on its 5-star scale and Skubal’s Under 7.5 as a 3-star play.

However, the model has found better value on Thursday’s 10-game schedule, as there are three pitcher strikeout player props that it has rated at 5 stars. Here they are:

Yoshinobu Yamamoto Under 7.5 strikeouts (-146) vs. Giants (10:10 p.m. ET)

Rating: 5 stars
Model projection: 5.9 strikeouts

Yamamoto is due for a decline in strikeouts as he has fanned 10 batters in each of his last three starts, including one against the Giants last Friday. The 27-year-old Japanese right-hander had four consecutive six-strikeout outings prior to his current run. Yamamoto lasted only 4 2/3 innings In his only previous home start against San Francisco on June 13 and registered just four strikeouts.

Luis Castillo Over 4.5 strikeouts (+123) vs. Royals (2:10 p.m. ET)

Rating: 4.5 stars
Model projection: 5.2 strikeouts

Castillo has recorded five or more strikeouts in four consecutive starts and six of his last seven. The 32-year-old Dominican righty has gone Over his projected total for Thursday in 21 of his 30 turns this season. Castillo, who has racked up 32 strikeouts across 40 2/3 frames in seven career starts versus the Royals, fanned five batters over six innings of a no-decision against the Los Angeles Angels in his last outing. 

Logan Webb Over 5.5 strikeouts (+106) vs. Dodgers (10:10 p.m. ET)

Rating: 4.5 stars
Model projection: 6.2 strikeouts

Webb has averaged 6.6 strikeouts over his last 10 starts, recording at least six on six occasions during that span. The 28-year-old righty worked only four innings against the Dodgers in his last outing but still fanned five batters. He racked up seven strikeouts in each of his previous three turns and finished with six over 5 1/3 frames in his previous start versus Los Angeles back in July. Webb has registered 86 strikeouts across 101 2/3 innings in 19 career outings against the Dodgers.Â