Ricky Dimon
The proverbial second half of the Major League Baseball season is underway and it continues with a full 15-game schedule on Saturday. It includes Red Sox vs Cubs, Giants vs Blue Jays, Yankees vs Braves, Astros vs Mariners and Brewers vs Dodgers. The YRFI/NRFI market is extremely popular in baseball betting. After all, you don’t have to sit around for 3 hours to see if your wager hits; the satisfaction (or in some cases disappointment) is immediate. It all comes down to the first inning.
I have been in fine form so far this season, with a 50-34-2 record on best bets while going 4-for-9 on Same Game Parlays at +481, +632, +439 and +600 odds and 11-7 on YRFI/NRFI plays.
Here are my favorite YRFI/NRFI bets for Saturday, and also be sure to check out all of our MLB picks.
San Diego Padres vs Washington Nationals: YRFI (-118)
Odds available at FanDuel Sportsbook at time of publishing
Yu Darvish simply cannot be trusted right now. San Diego’s veteran right-hander did not pitch until July due to right-elbow inflammation and early returns are far from encouraging. Through 2 appearances spanning 8.1 innings, Darvish has surrendered 6 earned runs on 8 hits and 6 walks. Washington cleanup hitter Josh Bell is 5-for-13 (.385) lifetime against the 38-year-old with 2 doubles and 1 home run.
Of course, the YRFI may have already cashed before the Nationals come to bat. Mitchell Parker will face the Padres in the top of the first inning, and he can’t be counted on to get through it unscathed. Parker is 5-10 with a 5.12 ERA and 1.42 WHIP while issuing 40 walks and recording a mere 66 strikeouts in 102.0 innings. To put it simply, this guy stinks. Luis Arraez is 5-for-9 all time against the 25-year-old lefty; Jackson Merrill is 4-for-5. In 2 July outings, Merrill has given up a ridiculous 16 runs (11 earned) across 10.2 innings of work. I’m banking on an all-around big first inning.
St. Louis Cardinals vs Arizona Diamondbacks: NRFI (-125)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing
We should have a pretty nice pitching matchup on our hands for Saturday’s matchup between St. Louis and Arizona. Sonny Gray is toeing the rubber for the Cardinals; he is 9-3 with a 3.50 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in addition to 118 strikeouts compared to just 19 walks in 108.0 innings. The first 2 batters in the Diamondbacks’ lineup (Corbin Carroll and Geraldo Perdomo) are a combined 0-for-6 lifetime against Gray.
Arizona is countering with Ryne Nelson, who is 5-2 with a 3.68 ERA and 1.07 WHIP. The right-hander has allowed 2 runs or fewer in 5 of his last 6 starts – including 1 earned run or fewer on 4 of those occasions. Familiarity with Nelson is low for the Cardinals’ lineup, and that usually favors the pitcher. St. Louis comes in with a 28.9 YRFI percentage, which is nothing special. I think both pitchers have a good chance of getting things started with a goose-egg on Saturday.
