Caleb Wilfinger
The MLB season continues on Saturday, and 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 are today’s MLB YRFI/NRFI best bets, and don’t forget to check out our MLB picks for EVERY GAME today.
YRFI/NRFI best bet: Marlins vs Diamondbacks – YRFI (-110)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing. Playable to -120.
Our first best bet in the YRFI/NRFI market comes in Arizona, where the Diamondbacks are set to host the Marlins in the middle game of this 3-game series. The series opener featured plenty of offense, and I suspect that we’ll see a continuation of that trend on Saturday, especially with this starting pitching matchup. While his last couple of starts have been a noticeable improvement, this season has still not gone to plan for Sandy Alcantara following his return from Tommy John surgery, as he has posted a 6.69 ERA and 1.46 WHIP through his first 15 outings. As for Arizona, the Diamondbacks are countering with Brandon Pfaadt, who is in the bottom 1% of all qualified starters in xERA (6.79) and expected batting average (.321), to go along with a 49.8% hard-hit rate. I’ll back the YRFI at Chase Field.
YRFI/NRFI best bet: Phillies vs Braves – NRFI (-130)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing. Playable to -140.
For our second best bet in the YRFI/NRFI market, we’re heading to Atlanta for an NL East showdown between the Phillies and Braves. Unlike the previous game, this matchup promises to be a pitcher’s duel, so I’m naturally leaning toward backing a scoreless first inning at Truist Park. Spencer Schwellenbach is in the midst of another solid season and he should see early success against a Phillies lineup that hasn’t done much against the right-hander to this point in his career. On the other side, the visitors will turn to Jesus Luzardo in this one, and the left-hander’s solid expected metrics (3.47 xERA, top 20% in whiff rate and barrel rate) suggest that positive regression is coming his way sooner rather than later. Ultimately, I’m still comfortable playing the NRFI at the current number on Saturday.
