Handicapping MLB NRFI And YRFI Odds For Thursday, April 17
There are 10 MLB games on the schedule for Thursday, April 17, and Lineups has the odds for each NRFI/YRFI line at US sports betting sites.
Below, we break down three matchups and the potential for runs in the first inning.
| Game | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Diamondbacks at Marlins | ||
| Nationals at Pirates | ||
| Mariners at Reds | ||
| Athletics at White Sox | ||
| Giants at Phillies | ||
| Guardians at Orioles | ||
| Royals at Tigers | ||
| Yankees at Rays | ||
| Cardinals at Mets | ||
| Angels at Rangers |
Contents
Athletics at Chicago White Sox, 2:10 p.m. ET (NRFI)
Two quality arms in J.P. Sears and Davis Martin take the hill to close out a three-game series in Thursday’s matinee clash. Sears posted back-to-back quality starts against the Mariners and Rockies on the road to open his season, pitching to a 3.46 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in that pair of turns.
He surrendered three earned runs over four innings against the Mets last time out, but he still managed to record seven strikeouts. He’s in a great position to bounce back Thursday against a Pirates team that’s only mustered a .200 average, .251 wOBA and -6.3 wRAA against left-handed pitching, along with a 29.7% strikeout rate.
Martin has pitched to plenty of contact, but he’s still mustered a respectable 4.24 ERA and has put together quality starts in two of his first three trips to the mound. Some of Martin’s underlying metrics and the fact he ran into a little trouble in his first two first innings of the season do add a slight element of risk, but he had an unblemished opening frame last time out against the Red Sox and has held current A’s hitters to a collective .133 average and .467 OPS in a modest sample of 15 career encounters.
St. Louis Cardinals at New York Mets, 7:10 p.m. ET (NRFI)
Andre Pallante and Griffin Canning face off in this evening NL battle that kicks off a four-game set. Pallante has particularly gotten his season off to a strong start with a 2-0 mark, 2.20 ERA and 1.04 WHIP, while allowing two earned runs or fewer in each of his first three trips to the mound.
The right-hander has also pitched to a .182 BAA in his first three opening frames of the season, and he’s limited the likely 1-2-3 hitters in New York’s lineup (Francisco Lindor, Juan Soto, Pete Alonso) to a combined 3-for-14 career tally that’s devoid of any extra-base hits. New York is averaging the sixth-fewest first-inning runs per game (0.28) so far this season.
Canning is still getting his footing in the NL after multiple seasons with the Angels, but he put together a couple of solid showings in his first two starts (2.79 ERA, 9.3 K/9 across 9.2 innings) before a so-so outing against the Athletics last time out in which he surrendered four runs over 5.1 innings. Nevertheless, all we need is for Canning to get through the first inning unscathed, something he’s managed to do in all three starts while holding opposing batters to a .200 average.
St. Louis has been even less effective than New York in the first inning (0.22 first-inning runs per game), further solidifying the NRFI bet.
Los Angeles Angels at Texas Rangers, 8:05 p.m. ET (YRFI)
A pair of vulnerable arms in Jack Kochanowicz and Kumar Rocker take the hill for the finale of a series that’s seen the Rangers take the first two games by modest 4-0 and 3-1 margins. There could be a bit of an offensive breakout for both clubs in this one given the body of work of each starting pitcher, however, as the opening line of 10 total runs suggests.
Kochanowicz has had varying degrees of trouble with the long ball (1.7 HR/9) and control (3.4 BB/9) in his first three starts, leading to a 5.74 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. The right-hander’s xBAA of .275 and xwOBA of .341 pretty much corroborate that hitters have been seeing the ball well against him, and he’s also pitched to a 9.00 ERA and .308 BAA in the first inning thus far.
Meanwhile, Rocker has been in even worse shape, furnishing an 0-2 record, 7.94 ERA and 1.94 WHIP alongside a 1.6 HR/9. His 4.8 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 are very unsightly, especially when taken together, and he’s left men on base at just a 57.1% clip. Rocker is also allowing a .294 average with men in scoring position, a .333 figure with men on base, and an identical 9.00 ERA and .308 BAA to Kochanowicz in the first inning.
Both the Angels (0.65) and Rangers (0.50) are in the top half of MLB in first-inning runs per game.
