New York Yankees RHP Gerrit Cole has found his form after missing all of last season and part of this season due to injury. He and the Toronto Blue Jays are set up to cash an NRFI. The Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers also have a good matchup to cash an NRFI. For the Kansas City Royals and Los Angeles Angels, things are likely to get rowdy early as we go for a YRFI in that one.
The St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs get things started Friday at 2:20 p.m. ET. Get those bets in early.
All odds are from DraftKings Sportsbook and are subject to change. DraftKings does not sponsor this content.
More MLB Predictions:
- Best MLB Home Run Prop Bet Predictions for Friday, Aug. 14
Best NRFI and YRFI Bets Today
New York Yankees at Toronto Blue Jays NRFI (-125)
The Yankees go with RHP Gerrit Cole at 6-5 with a 3.35 ERA. The promising stat: His K/9 rose to 9.7, which is the highest it has been since 2022. He hasn't given up a first-inning run in six starts and sports a 1.93 ERA in the opening frame. Blue Jays RHP Shane Bieber is also a former ace making his way back from injury, but it hasn't gone as smoothly. He's 3-2 with a 5.48 ERA. His first-inning ERA is ugly at 8.31, but four of those eight earned runs came three starts ago. Bieber has kept it clean in two straight.
Milwaukee Brewers at Los Angeles Dodgers NRFI (-115)
In a potential NLCS preview, the Brew Crew goes with RHP Robert Gasser at 3-4 with a 4.57 ERA. He's solid in the first, though, with a 3.46 ERA and 16 K's in 13 starts. RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto goes for the Dodgers. He's 11-7 with a 2.65 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. Yamamoto has a 3.86 ERA, which is so-so - largely due to six walks and three homers in 21 first frames. Opposing hitters are hitting just .234 off of him in the first.
Kansas City Royals at Los Angeles Angels YRFI (-120)
The Royals send RHP Seth Lugo to the mound at 5-7 with a 4.41 ERA. He has his issues in the first with a 5.62 ERA and .292 opponents' batting average. RHP Grayson Rodriguez goes for the Angels at 3-5 with a 7.20 ERA. His first-inning ERA isn't much better at 6.75. Opposing hitters rake at a .326 clip with a .587 slugging percentage. This has the makings of getting messy early.
What Do NRFI and YRFI Mean in Baseball?
The term NRFI indicates no runs scored in the first inning. Its opposite, YRFI, indicates yes, there will be a run in the first inning. It doesn't matter if the run qualifies as an earned run or not. If a run crosses the plate in the first inning for either team, the wager loses for the NRFI side and wins for the YRFI side.
