Andrew Ortenberg
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The 2021 MLB season kicked off exactly four weeks ago now, and the action has been jam-packed. Why not celebrate the small slate by going for a big payday on Thursday? That’s right, we’re back with another MLB mega parlay, this time a three-teamer with a payout north of 12/1, where we’re counting on the Red Sox to keep up their recent success.
We’re going big and bold, so let’s not waste any more time. We’re diving in, but don’t forget to check out our picks for the side and total on every MLB game, with our team of experts in red-hot form to start the season.
Philadelphia Phillies -1.5 (+150)
Boston Red Sox -1.5 (+125)
Colorado Rockies ML (+140)
Parlay odds: +1250
Let’s break down each of the three legs one by one.
Philadelphia Phillies -1.5 (+150)
The Phillies beat the Cardinals by multiple runs on Wednesday, and I think they’ll do it again on Thursday. Bryce Harper got pegged in the face with a fastball on Wednesday, but he says he’s all good. The back to back beanings of Harper and Didi Gregorious have fired up the whole team. The Phillies also have a big edge on the mound here, as Aaron Nola squares off against Kwang Hyun-Kim. Hyun-Kim has looked just OK in his first two starts of 2021, and I don’t think the 32-year-old anywhere near as good as he pitched in his first seven big league starts in 2020. Nola has been fantastic the past four years, and has a 2.84 ERA through five outings this year. When he faced this same Cardinals lineup earlier this season, he tossed a complete game shutout.
Boston Red Sox -1.5 (+125)
I’m not sure what else the Red Sox have to do to earn more respect, apparently starting 16-9 isn’t enough. Martin Perez isn’t great, but neither is Texas starter Kyle Gibson. Gibson has been excellent his past few starts, but this is still a guy who only managed to get one out in his first outing. This is still a guy who had a 5.35 ERA last year and a 4.84 ERA the year before. I think the pitching matchup is mostly even, but the lineups aren’t even comparable. They’ve played the same amount of games, but the Red Sox have scored 23 more runs. The Red Sox are first in the league in team OPS, the Rangers are 21st. Texas also has the fifth-worst bullpen ERA in MLB, while Boston has the seventh-best.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Boston Red Sox vs. Texas Rangers.
Colorado Rockies ML (+140)
To wrap this mega parlay up and hopefully bring us home, we’re going with the Rockies on the money line. Colorado got off to a tough start, but they’ve now gone 5-3 in their last eight games. They scored at least five runs in six of those eight games. The Diamondbacks are coming off a 12-3 loss to the Padres, and shouldn’t be this large of a favorite here. Arizona will start Luke Weaver here, who has a 4.57 ERA. He’s given up at least eight baserunners and four earned runs in each of his last two starts. Current Rockies hitters also have a lifetime .922 OPS against him. Ryan McMahon alone has three home runs off Weaver in only nine at bats. McMahon is hot right now, with two home runs in his past four games, so he could do some serious damage here.
Be sure to check out our full game preview for Colorado Rockies vs. Arizona Diamondbacks.
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