Kevin Davies
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Happy Memorial Day! There is plenty of baseball around the country happening on this holiday, and it’s best that we celebrate the day with a parlay. I’ve taken three of my favorite picks from today’s slate to create a parlay that pays out at over 12/1 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook!
Nationals ML (+164)
Guardians ML (-120)
Phillies -1.5 (+170)
Parlay odds: +1206
Washington Nationals ML (+164) over Atlanta Braves
The Braves suffered a major loss yesterday as Ronald Acuna Jr. tore his ACL and is out for the rest of the season. As their leadoff hitter, stolen base threat, and clutch hitter, his presence in the lineup will be greatly missed. In addition to Acuna Jr., the Braves are also still missing Austin Riley with an oblique injury. Between those two injuries and Matt Olson’s sluggish start to the season, the Braves no longer have the most dangerous lineup in baseball.
Mitchell Parker has been impressive in his rookie season. The lefty owns a 3.32 ERA and 3.67 xERA in 7 starts and has already faced some of the best offenses in the league. His MLB debut came against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, and since then, he’s faced the Astros, Rangers, and Orioles too. The bottom line is that the pitching matchup is very close, and without Acuna Jr. in the lineup, I’m willing to take a shot on the Nats at great odds.
Cleveland Guardians ML (-120) over Colorado Rockies
It’s a battle of top and bottom in the most hitter friendly park. The Guardians are coming off a three game sweep of the Angels in Los Angeles and have extended their win streak to nine. Cleveland has quietly been one of the most productive teams in baseball as their lineup is extremely balanced, their starting rotation is above-average, and their bullpen is lights out. For today’s series opener, the Guardians will start Xzavion Curry, who owns a 1.93 ERA after three starts.
The Rockies just took two of three games from the league-leading Phillies this weekend. It was quite the surprise to see the Colorado lineup come alive, but it’s hard to expect that production to continue against Curry and the best bullpen in baseball. Cleveland is red-hot, and Austin Gomber shouldn’t be the pitcher to break up their winning streak.
Philadelphia Phillies -1.5 (+170) over San Francisco Giants
It took longer than expected, but the Giants finally won the Blake Snell sweepstakes over the offseason. However, the reigning Cy Young winner has been terrible for his new team. The southpaw had a 2.25 ERA and 31.5% strikeout rate last season, but he’s posted an 11.40 ERA and 22.1% strikeout rate in four outings this season. His command has gotten worse, his offspeed pitches have less movement, and his fastball looks a lot flatter.
Admittedly, Taijuan Walker is not my favorite pitcher to back. He gets hit hard and doesn’t strike out a ton of hitters, but my thinking in this game is that the Giants offense won’t be able to keep up with Philadelphia’s. Neither pitcher has had a good start to the season, but we’ve seen the Philadelphia offense produce at an incredibly high rate all year. Both pitchers are going to get hit, and in the end, the Phillies offense should be the difference.
