I disagree completely with a) the idea that large chalk should be put in parlays and b) the idea that runlines should be bet if the chalk is too high. If you like the high chalk, just bet it flat. People who bet $100 flat and got burned by, say, Maddux, Pedro and Johnson yesterday are only down $300. You just have to come back and win 3 units worth of games over the next 180 days or so of the season.
The problem comes when you lose $100 instead of winning $40 because you gave 1 1/2 runs or when you lose $100 on a two team parlay instead of only losing $25 when the big chalk goes 1-1 on two $50 straight bets.
Now, all of this having been said, I am no proponent of backing big faves based on superstar pitchers. I think that big name pitchers often lose their value because the public loves them too much. I agree with most of what has been said in this thread but I just wanted to throw up a word of caution on the points that were made about runlines and parlays.
