Best NRFI Bets Today – No Runs First Inning Picks UPDATED DAILY

The Pirates and Marlins wrap up a four-game series at Marlins Park this afternoon. Miami is looking to take three of four games after a 5-4 loss in extra innings yesterday.

All three games in the series opener have resulted in the NRFI winning. I’ve chased in on two of the NRFI bets, which doesn’t come as much of a surprise. The Pirates and Marlins have two of the worst lineups in the Major Leagues, so scoreless innings are the norm.

It should be more of the same on Sunday with Andrew Heaney and Max Meyer on the mound. Heaney makes his Pirates debut after a couple of decent years in Texas. The former Angel posted a 4.15 and 4.28 ERA in back-to-back seasons.

Although Heaney doesn’t have the most experience against this Marlins club, this roster of batters hasn’t scored against him in 10 at-bats. Meyer counters for the Marlins, who can be a great asset if he can stay healthy. The 26-year-old showed solid growth in spring training after failing to find a rhythm in the regular season.

Max Meyer's final outing before the regular season.

5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

Here he strikes out Aaron Judge on a 96.8 mph heater above the belt. pic.twitter.com/8OWoUsnMKe

— Jeremiah Geiger (@JeremiahGeiger2) March 25, 2025

He posted a 5.68 ERA and 1.42 WHIP through 57 innings in 2024. Not a good look, but he’s a young prospect just getting his feet wet. I expect much more from him in 2025. He held his own in spring training, with a 3.21 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 14 frames.

Look for Meyer to get off to a quick start against a weak Pirates’ offense at home. As one of the best NRFI bets today, consider playing the Pirates vs. Marlins!

The Guardians and Royals conclude a three-game AL Central series at Kauffman Stadium on Sunday. Tanner Bibee is set to take to the hill for his first start of the season.

Bibee originally intended to take the Opening Day assignment, but was scratched due to food poisoning. He is feeling better now, and the Guardians’ No. 1 pitcher will assume starting duties today. He took the top spot in the rotation after posting an ERA of 3.25 and a 1.14 WHIP through his first two seasons.

Tanner Bibee, Elevated 96mph ⛽️ pic.twitter.com/dc6UgkhcuG

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 10, 2024

There is a decent chance that Bibee elevates his game and delivers even better results this year. Bibee was in top form in the spring training for the Guardians. He finished with a 1.88 ERA and 0.84 WHIP across 14.1 innings. There wasn’t much that he did wrong.

On the opposite side, the Royals assign veteran Michael Wacha the start at home. Wacha has been in quality form over the last three years on the bump. He recorded a 3.32, 3.22, and 3.35 ERA to prove he has plenty of gas left in the tank.

For your best NRFI bets today, the Guardians vs. Royals is a matchup worth considering!

The Athletics and Mariners have been a cash show for NRFI picks this opening weekend. The prop has hit in all three games heading into the series finale on Sunday.

There is a good chance of it going 3-0 in this matchup at T-Mobile Park. Mariners’ starter Brayn Woo was one of the more underrated pitchers in baseball a season ago. Woo concluded the season with an ERA of 2.89 and a 0.90 WHIP through 22 starts.

Bryan Woo, 6Ks thru 2. 😲 pic.twitter.com/MzK3PBtGTs

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 7, 2025

Despite his effort, Woo wasn’t discussed much in 2024. Nevertheless, if he repeats in that form, it will be difficult for pundits to ignore his presence. Look for Woo to get off to a strong start versus a mediocre A’s offense in this one.

Likewise, lefty JP Sears should be in good form. Sears heads into this start with an ERA of 4.38 and a 1.22 WHIP from last season. Note that the Mariners are hitting just .191 with two home runs in 89 at-bats against Sears!

With this solid resume and history against the Mariners, Sears should manage to get past the opening frame untouched. In short, consider the Athletics vs. Mariners for your NRFI best bets today!

1. Check The Starting Lineups, Especially The Pitchers

You should always begin with the lineups. Check who the starting pitchers are and then go through the latest injuries and suspensions to see whether any of the teams will be missing key pieces.

We usually go to the CBS’ MLB injury report to see who’s out and who’s doubtful. They pull the data directly from league reports, so it’s trustworthy information.

2. Analyzing NRFI Stats

Once we know the most likely lineups, it’s time for a key step of our NRFI betting strategy: analyzing numbers. You need to go through various data points to determine how likely is for the opening inning of a game to end without any runs.

We explore the individual stats of the starting pitchers, we analyze the offensive numbers of both sides, and we also take a look at the total team stats for first inning runs.

Once we have a complete overview of what’s going on, we create our own estimates (in percentages) of how likely it is to see no runs in the first inning.

After that, it’s time to check the odds!

3. Line Shopping

It’s time to check some betting odds! We use two bookmakers that offer daily NRFI betting odds for the MLB: Bovada and BetWhale. We check their prices for all games and turn them into probabilities.

We compare them to our own estimates and when we see good betting value, we place our NRFI wagers!

We strongly recommend using multiple top betting sites yourself for the best results. The two we highlighted above are all excellent for no runs first inning bets.