Ricky Dimon
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The Major League Baseball week gets underway with a small 6-game slate on Monday. Most teams are in between series, but tonight’s highlights include Reds vs Orioles, Twins vs Braves and Brewers vs Mets. There are plenty of options with which to come up with some enticing YRFI/NRFI bets as I look to build on my 2-0 record from Sunday.
This market has become extremely popular in baseball betting. After all, you don’t have to sit around for 3 hours (or maybe a lot less now that games are not as long on average!) to see if your wager hits; the satisfaction (or in some cases disappointment) is immediate. It all comes down to the first inning.
Here are my best YRFI/NRFI bets for Monday, and also be sure to check out all of our MLB picks.
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Minnesota Twins vs Atlanta Braves: NRFI (-110)
Spencer Strider of the Braves hit a rough stretch during 2 mid-June outings, but he has otherwise been borderline dominant in 2023 and he was back to his normal self last Wednesday at Philadelphia (6.0 innings of 1-run baseball with 9 strikeouts and no walks). Strider has logged a scoreless first inning in 4 of his past 5 starts. The Twins’ lineup has combined for 3 lifetime at-bats against Strider and nobody has ever gotten a hit off him, so I anticipate such unfamiliarity being a problem especially in the early stages of the game.
With Sonny Gray taking the mound for Minnesota, he should be able to limit Atlanta’s dangerous lineup better than most. Gray has been great in 2023, with a 4-1 record and 2.53 ERA in addition to 84 strikeouts in 81.0 innings. The right-hander had made a whopping 10 consecutive appearances without giving up a run in the first inning before Boston victimized him for 1 last week. Look for Gray to start a new NRFI streak on Monday night.
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Washington Nationals vs Seattle Mariners: NRFI (-120)
Luis Castillo will get this game started with the Mariners in the field and I fully expect him to put up a goose-egg in the opening frame. Castillo is sporting a stellar 2.89 ERA and 1.05 WHIP to go along with 101 strikeouts in 87.1 innings. The right-hander has made 6 consecutive appearances without giving up a first-inning run. There is no reason to think anything will change against the lowly Nationals, who have scored more runs this season than only the Marlins, Brewers and Pirates in the National League. Lane Thomas (3-for-10 with 2 singles and a double) is the only player in the Washington lineup who has enjoyed even marginal success against Castillo in the past.
Trevor Williams is toeing the rubber for the visitors, and his situation is a little more tenuous. On the bright side, Williams comes in with a respectable 4.14 ERA and in his most recent outing he worked 6.0 innings of shutout baseball against St. Louis. The veteran righty has pitched to the NRFI in 12 of his last 14 starts, so you really have to like his chances of keeping Seattle in check early.
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