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Welcome back to another great week of baseball. Today, we have a loaded slate of action, giving bettors plenty of options.
Here, we will break down the best MLB NRFI and YRFI picks for today, Monday, April 1. There are two outcomes in the first inning of a baseball game. Either no runs will be scored (NRFI), or one or more runs will be scored in the first inning (YRFI).
This type of baseball bet is easy for bettors because you do not have to sit through all nine innings of a game to see if your wager wins or not. Anyway, let’s look at our MLB NRFI/YRFI best bets.
MLB NRFI/YRFI Picks
Tigers vs. Mets – NRFI
The Tigers and Mets offenses have been pretty bad to start the season. This is only the second series of the year, but New York could only total eight runs in their opening series against the Brewers.
Meanwhile, the Tigers scored 11 runs in three games against the White Sox. While the pitching matchup does give the over in this game an edge, we will continue to fade these offenses for at least one more inning. Detroit has yet to collect an extra-base hit against left-handed pitching this season and is slashing .233/.273/.233 as a team.
Although Sean Manaea has seen his barrel rate almost double over the last three seasons, this Tigers lineup does not instill much confidence right now. On the other side, the Mets are off to the slowest start in baseball offensively.
They have four home runs during the season, and the top of the lineup has a lot of pop, but New York has failed to score a run in the first inning. Expect both offenses to continue struggling in tonight’s matchup and take the Tigers vs. Mets NRFI.
Royals vs. Orioles – YRFI
The Orioles have one of the best offenses in baseball through three games. They rank 6th in runs (25), have a 135 wRC+, and have a favorable matchup today against the Royals.
Kansas City will send out Michael Wacha tonight. He is a solid pitcher but has struggled against Baltimore in his career. Wacha has allowed 104 earned runs in the first inning during his career, the second-most by inning.
This is primarily because of his trouble keeping the ball in the park. While he had a big 2023 season with the Padres, where his HR/9 fell to 1.00 and he allowed his lowest Barrel% since 2019, the top of the Orioles lineup could cause a lot of trouble.
Baltimore has Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman batting one-two in the lineup, followed by Ryan Mountcastle and Anthony Santander.
Both are hot to start the year and have previous success against Wacha. It also helps that Wacha’s 2023 season, while solid, has some ugly truth buried deep, with a 4.27 xERA and 4.47 xFIP. The Royals exploded for 11 runs yesterday against the Twins, and they also have a favorable matchup tonight, with an inconsistent Dean Kremer getting the nod.
Both offenses are playing well, and we will ride them in the first inning of this Monday evening matchup.
Giants vs. Dodgers – YRFI
The Dodgers’ top-of-the-lineup is just absolutely ridiculous. If we are going to start anywhere, it is Mookie Betts, who is flaming hot to start the season.
In the Seoul Series, Betts finished with six hits and a .667/.727/1.111 slash and picked up seven RBI. Betts also has four home runs and had his first hitless game of the season on Sunday Night Baseball. He is currently playing at an MVP level, which is scary if you are a Giants pitcher.
What is even more terrifying is that Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani are also two of the best hitters in the game and bat right behind Betts. The Giants have also showcased some offensive power, with six home runs and a top-10 team OPS (.449).
They will take on James Paxton, who had a brutal spring and is coming off one of the worst seasons of his career in Boston. With two solid lineups and questionable starting pitching, this is an easy YRFI bet for tonight’s MLB slate.
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