Baseball is faster than ever with the implementation of the pitch clock, but DraftKings Sportsbook also has a market for those who still can’t wait 2.5 hours for results. NRFI bets (No Run First Inning) are exactly what they sound like. They give the bettor the ability to wager specifically on the outcome of a game’s opening frame. Will either team score a run? Yes or no? It’s that simple.
With that in mind, here are my top two NRFI picks for Monday’s slate of MLB action.
Rays at Blue Jays NRFI (-145)
The Rays and Jays start an AL East series north of the border on Monday night, and it sets up to be a good pitching matchup in the first game of the series between Kevin Gausman and Drew Rasmussen. Both veteran righties are off to strong starts this year and have good NRFI numbers for their careers.
Gausman has not allowed a first-inning run yet this season, posting a 3.09 ERA and 3.24 FIP overall. He has been extremely efficient, needing only 13.6 pitches and facing only 3.6 batters per first inning this season on average. He faced the Rays last Tuesday and went six innings, allowing two runs on six hits in a no-decision.
Rasmussen opposed Gausman in that game, giving up three runs on seven hits in six innings. He gave up a home run to Kazuma Akamoto in the first inning to spoil NRFI in that matchup, but before that he had only given up a run once in six starts. For his career, Rasmussen has a 78.4% NRFI rate, which is the highest mark of any pitcher on Monday’s slate.
From a team perspective, the Rays and Blue Jays are both league average or above at hitting NRFI. The Blue Jays have hit 50% in their 40 games, but the Rays are 56.4%, which puts them into the top 10 in the MLB.
Giants at Dodgers NRFI (-110)
Picking against the potent Dodgers lineup always seems risky, but statistically, they have hit 55% of NRFI this year, putting them above league average. The Giants have been an even better NRFI play, though, with their struggling offense. They have a 60% NRFI rate that is the fifth-highest in the majors
The Dodgers will give the ball to Roki Sasaki in the series opener against their rival, and even though he has struggled this year, his first innings have been good. Sasaki has hit 10 of 14 NRFI in his career and successfully worked a scoreless first inning in each of his six starts this season. Things have unraveled on him after that, but all we need is one clean frame from him for this NRFI.
The Giants will counter with rookie Trevor McDonald, who was excellent in his first start of the season, going seven innings and allowing just one run on two hits. His one run allowed did come in the first inning on a solo homer to Jackson Merrill.
He’ll look to avoid any similar mistakes in the first inning and build on his momentum even in this tough environment at Dodger Stadium. He’s obviously risky with so little experience and facing a strong Dodgers lineup, but the odds are close to even money, which makes this a strong Monday night value to consider for NRFI.
