The Phillies are continuing their trip out west by heading to San Francisco. After a midweek series in Arizona, they have the Giants for this weekend. They did not get off to the start of this trip that they expected, but bounced back by crushing the Diamondbacks 18-2 in the finale. Meanwhile, the Giants also had a rough midweek series and were swept by the Padres. They're both still hoping for a wildcard spot, but it's the Phillies in a much stronger position. With both teams losing their prior series, let's break down who should get off to the better start to the we ekend. Along with this same game parlay, be sure to check out our MLB picks for all of today's games.
Phillies ML (-108)
Over 6.5 total runs (-215)
Bryce Harper 2+ total bases (+115)
Parlay odds: +363
Let's take a closer look at each leg of our same game parlay.
Philadelphia Phillies ML (-108) over San Francisco Giants
Although the Phillies didn't enjoy the Arizona warmth as much as they would have liked, they should be able to heat up themselves out by the bay. First and foremost, the Giants have been in struggle-city since the all-star break. It's true they began the second half of their season with some tough series against the Dodgers, but they can't even maintain a .500 record at this point. After they were just swept by the Padres, they've now lost 7 straight games. That also puts them now 10.5 games back from a wildcard spot, while the Phillies look to be in a great position for one.
This is also an opportunity for Philly to take advantage of Giants starter Alex Cobb on the mound before they face lefty ace Carlos Rodon later in the series. San Francisco has now lost 6 of his last 7 starts, and their bullpen has sunk all the way to the league's 8th-worst. That's a recipe for disaster against a Phillies team that recently welcomed back reigning-MVP Bryce Harper. He, Kyle Schwarber and the rest of that lineup should provide enough support for starter Kyle Gibson. He got the no-decision during the only other meeting between these teams this season, but he gave up just 2 runs in his 6.0 innings. That game saw Logan Webb's best appearance of the season, striking out 10 in 8.0 innings. Cobb poses much less of a threat in that regard, so trust the Phillies to avenge Gibson's previous performance.'