There are 11 games of MLB action across today’s Monday, August 11th slate. This leaves plenty of options for DraftKings users to get involved in the action. One of the more exciting wagers is the no-run first inning (NRFI). It takes just one inning of baseball and six total outs for this wager to be decided. It is essential to identify which players tend to perform at their best early in games and which lineups tend to experience early-game struggles.
Ahead of Monday’s MLB slate, here are three NRFI bets worth placing on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Phillies at Reds NRFI (+100)
The Philadelphia Phillies will open up a series against the Cincinnati Reds tonight. Taijuan Walker will be on the mound for the Phillies, while Andrew Abbot gets the start for the Reds. Abbot enters with the fourth-lowest first-inning ERA in baseball, giving up just three earned runs in his 20 starts, or a 1.35 ERA in the first inning. Abbot has not allowed a first-inning run in his past five starts.
It has been a steep fall for Taijuan Walker since he was first handed a four-year, $72 million contract to come to Philadelphia. But Walker has quietly been amid a resurgent season and enters with a 3.53 ERA with 60 strikeouts across his 79.0 innings pitched. Walker is coming off six scoreless innings pitched in his previous start and has escaped with a scoreless first inning in four of his past five starts.
The Phillies enter without scoring a run in the first inning in back-to-back games, while the Reds have not scored a run in the first inning in any of their last seven games. Walker is feeling the pressure of his past underperformance and has impressed in recent games, while Abbot has consistently started strong all season. Expect the runs to come later on in the series opener tonight.
Diamondbacks vs. Rangers NRFI (-135)
The Arizona Diamondbacks and Texas Rangers will open up a series tonight with Ryne Nelson and Nathan Eovaldi on the mound. Nelson has had a strong start to the year with a 3.20 ERA and 1.05 WHIP with 89 strikeouts across his first 101.1 innings pitched. He has held opponents scoreless in the first inning in 11 of the 14 games, and also allowed two earned runs or fewer in nine of his last 10 starts.
Nathan Eovaldi has pitched like a Cy Young candidate this year and is third in odds on DraftKings Sportsbook to win the award at +1800 odds. The Rangers star is posting a 1.38 ERA and 0.84 WHIP with 111 strikeouts in 111 innings pitched. He has allowed just two earned runs in his last six starts, or 38.2 innings pitched. He has also only allowed a run in the first inning in two of his 19 starts.
Eovaldi has been on an impressive stretch, with little reason to believe this will stop. Texas also ranks 20th in runs per first inning. The game total for this matchup is set at 7.5, which is the second-lowest on the slate. Buckle up for a pitchers’ duel and expect the runs to come later in this matchup.
Dodgers at Angels NRFI (-120)
In the late portion of today’s MLB slate, the Dodgers and Angels will face off in a battle of Los Angeles. Yoshinobu Yamamoto will be on the mound for the Dodgers and is posting a 2.51 ERA and 1.04 WHIP with 139 strikeouts in 122 innings pitched. He has allowed just eight earned runs in his last seven starts, spanning over 37.1 innings pitched. The Angels’ strike out at one of the highest rates in baseball, which will be problematic with Yamamoto’s 28.5% strikeout rate in mind. He has held opponents scoreless in 17 of his 23 starts, including against some much more fearful lineups than what the Angels will put forth.
Jose Soriano will be on the mound for the Angels. The 26-year-old is posting a 4.01 ERA and 1.30 WHIP with 119 strikeouts in 137 innings pitched. Los Angeles offers an intimidating lineup, but Soriano has escaped without allowing a run in the first inning in 19 of his 24 starts. If he can get through the opening frame, you should feel great about Yamamoto shutting the door down at the bottom of the inning.
While the Dodgers got on the board in the first inning in the previous game, they failed to in the previous three games. The Angels also have only scored in the first inning in one of their previous 10 games played. With both pitchers having a strong NRFI track record, expect the runs to be hard to come by in the opening inning and for this to be a favorable spot for the NRFI to cash.
