The Phillies finished off the 1st half of the season strong, with a dominating sweep over the Marlins. They took it by a combined score of 16-1 over the 3 games. They now welcome a Cubs team that has been struggling throughout the entire year. Chicago has lost 9 of their last 10 games and are now just a half a game above the Reds for last in the NL Central. Although these teams appear on opposite trajectories, there are still plenty of ways to make this series opener profitable. Along with this same game parlay, be sure to check out our thoughts on the side and total for all of today's games.
Phillies -1.5 (+135)
Phillies – Over 4.5 total runs (-110)
Nick Castellanos 2+ total bases (-105)
Parlay odds: +340
Let's take a closer look at each leg of our same game parlay.
Phillies -1.5 (+135)
Friday's series opener looks to be a prime spot for the Phillies to get off to a great start to the 2nd half of their season. Not only are they facing a struggling Cubs team, they'll also be hitting against starter Justin Steele. He's had struggles of his own this season, even against some of the worst lineups. Chicago has now lost 5 of his last 7 starts, including against teams like the Pirates. Even his most recent win was against 1 of the few teams with a worse record than the Cubs, the Reds. Steele has also been smashed by the Reds this season, giving up 7 runs in 2.0 innings in a 20-5 loss.
Such a dominant loss also illustrates how weak the Cubs bullpen has been. Their struggles coupled with their lack of run production has been a huge problem. Chicago scored just 4 runs in a 4-game span the week leading up to the all-star break. All of that is great news for Phillies starter Kyle Gibson. He's looked great overall, as the team has won 6 of his last 8 starts. He's pitched at least 6.0 innings in 5 of those games, providing some relief for the Phillies bullpen. Gibson has allowed just 1 run over 13.0 innings in his last 2 starts, and should keep his hot streak going now with plenty of rest.'