LHP Carlos Rodon and the New York Yankees have a good matchup for an NRFI against the San Francisco Giants. The Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies also have a good matchup to take the NRFI to the bank. As for the Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas City Royals, we’re leaning toward the YRFI in that one.
Saturday’s action begins at 4:10 p.m., so after getting your college football on, be sure to get those MLB winners placed in time.
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 Saturday, Sept. 5
Best NRFI and YRFI Bets Today
New York Yankees at San Diego Padres NRFI (-130)
The Yanks send LHP Carlos Rodon to the mound at 4-3 with a 3.20 ERA in 12 starts. He has a 3.00 ERA and a .167 opponents’ batting average in the first inning. The Padres counter with LHP Robbie Ray at 11-7 with a 3.14 ERA. He has been solid in the first with a 2.77 ERA and a .226 opposing batting average. Both starters, plus spacious Petco Park, make this a good spot to cash an NRFI.
Atlanta Braves at Philadelphia Phillies NRFI (-115)
Sticking with the theme of lefties, Martin Perez goes for Atlanta at 8-8 with a 3.05 ERA. He’s a little less than desirable with a 4.09 ERA in the first, but opposing hitters have just a .215 batting average. The Phils turn to RHP Zack Wheeler at 11-5 with a 3.31 ERA. He has given up six runs in the first in his last two starts to skew his first-inning ERA to 3.91. He had given up four earned runs in 21 opening frames before that, though.
Toronto Blue Jays at Kansas City Royals YRFI (-130)
The Jays go with RHP Max Scherzer at 2-7 with a 6.16 ERA. He was great in his last start with seven shutout frames and 10 K’s. Before that, though, he allowed runs in the first in three straight turns to feed his 9.00 first-inning ERA. RHP Seth Lugo has had a down year at 6-8 with a 5.03 ERA. It doesn’t get any better in the first with a 6.75 ERA and a .310 opponents’ batting average.
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.
