Caleb Wilfinger
The MLB season continues on Saturday, and the second half of the 2025 campaign has already produced a lot of exciting action on the diamond. While there are plenty of ways to wager on all of the action this season, one of the quickest bets you can make is if a run will be scored in the first inning — YRFI or NRFI. There is still value to be had in this market, so it’s no wonder that these bets have become very popular over time. If you don’t like sweating out your wagers for 3 hours, this one will take only about 15 minutes.
The NRFI/YRFI market has been profitable for our MLB handicapping team this season, so let’s keep that momentum going! Here is today’s MLB YRFI/NRFI best bet, and don’t forget to check out our MLB picks for EVERY GAME today.
YRFI/NRFI best bet: Yankees vs Cardinals – NRFI (-150)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing. Playable to -160.
For my first best bet in this market on Saturday, let’s roll with the NRFI in St. Louis between the Yankees and Cardinals. New York has been struggling mightily over the last month, but the Yankees do have their best pitcher on the mound for the middle game of this 3-game set, as Max Fried (2.94 ERA) will get the ball for the visitors against a Cardinals lineup that is 24th in slugging and 21st in OPS on the season. As for the hosts, St. Louis will counter with Sonny Gray, who holds a 4.06 ERA, but his expected metrics (3.68 xERA, 4% walk rate, top 15 percentile chase rate) do suggest that some positive regression is coming in that department. Ultimately, both pitchers should start strong against these middling offenses, so I’ll back a quick first inning on Saturday.
YRFI/NRFI best bet: Padres vs Dodgers – NRFI (-110)
Odds available at FanDuel Sportsbook at time of publishing. Playable to -120.
My second best bet in the YRFI/NRFI market comes in this crucial NL West matchup between the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s always a little frightening to fade some of the big names at the top of each of these lineups, but Friday’s series opener had the feel of a playoff game, and that should translate into this matchup. Pitching should reign supreme on Saturday, especially since Blake Snell (2.37 ERA, 34.5% whiff rate) and Dylan Cease (3.38 xERA, top 5% whiff rate. .220 expected batting average against) are getting the ball for their respective sides. Couple that with some offenses that looked a little tight in the series opener, and all signs point me in the direction of the NRFI for a second straight time in this series.
Make sure you check out our MLB best bets for today
