Best NRFI Bets Today - Friday, September 19

Two of the top first-inning run producers in the Phillies and Diamondbacks collide at Chase Field tonight, with a shaky pitching matchup to boot. They should combine for a YRFI, as should these other two matchups.

Eric Rosales - Contributor at Covers.com
Eric Rosales • Betting Analyst
Sep 19, 2025 • 08:39 ET • 4 min read
Taijuan Walker Phillies MLB
Photo By - Imagn Images. Phillies SP Taijuan Walker in his wind-up.

All hands on deck Friday in Major League Baseball, with every team in action as part of the 15-game slate.

That’s the full catalogue of teams to target for your best NFRI bets and YRFI bets.

Below are my MLB picks for three matchups that will see some first-inning scoring. 

Best NRFI/YRFI bets today

  • Guardians Guardians vs Twins Twins: YRFI
  • Padres Padres vs White Sox White Sox: YRFI
  • Phillies Phillies vs Diamondbacks Diamondbacks: YRFI

JOIN THRILLZZ - AMERICA'S SOCIAL SPORTSBOOK

Download Thrillzz, today using the code COVERS and get a 400% match on your first coins purchase — plus 60,000 free coins and $3 in free sweeps coins!

Thrillz

Learn more with our comprehensive Thrillzz review.

Available in all states excluding AL, GA, ID, IN, IA, KY, LA, MI, MN, MS, NV, OH, SC, and WA.
18+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.

NRFI/YRFI bets for September 19

Guardians vs Twins: YRFI (Play at Thrillzz)

The Cleveland Guardians — the top NRFI team in the majors — come into this one as one of five teams currently holding the longest NRFI streak at four games.

However, they host the Minnesota Twins, who have cashed back-to-back YRFI tickets, and the pitching matchup suggests we could see a third.

Lefty Parker Messick gets the call for Cleveland, and he’ll be making just his sixth career start. So far Messick has allowed one earned run or less in all but one start, yet a first inning run has also plated in four of his five appearances.

Minnesota’s Pablo Lopez has seen his fair share of YRFIs, too. Five of his last seven starts have also seen a run in the first, and he’s been the one that surrendered it to the opponent four of those times.

  • Time: 8:10 p.m. ET
  • Where to watch: WKYC, TWINS.tv
  • Bet: YRFI

Padres vs White Sox: YRFI (Play at Thrillzz)

The San Diego Padres are currently baseball’s longest running YRFI streakers, putting together six in a row as they open up a series with the Chicago White Sox.

San Diego has scored at least six runs in six of the last eight starts by righty Dylan Cease, and a first-inning run has plated in four of his last six appearances.

Davis Martin can relate and can one-up his counterpart. The White Sox righty has had a YRFI in four straight starts and in seven of his last eight.

As a team, the White Sox have ripped off three straight YRFIs.

  • Time: 7:40 p.m. ET
  • Where to watch: PADRES.tv, CHSN
  • Bet: YRFI

Phillies vs Diamondbacks: YRFI (Play at Thrillzz)

It’s hard not to want to pick the Arizona Diamondbacks every time for a run in the first. They are baseball’s third-most prolific YRFI team and lead the bigs with scoring a first inning run at a 38.89% frequency.

Look who’s right behind them in that category: their Friday opponent, the Philadelphia Phillies, who deliver a YRFI themselves at a 36.75% clip.

Phillies pitcher Taijuan Walker has seen a first inning run plate in three straight starts — with Walker surrendering first inning runs in all three — and in five of his last seven.

Arizona’s Ryne Nelson has seen a YRFI in four of his last eight appearances.

  • Time: 9:40 p.m. ET
  • Where to watch: NBCSP, KPNX
  • Bet: YRFI

Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.

Pages related to this topic

Eric Rosales - Covers
Betting Analyst

Eric has been involved in sports media in many different capacities since graduating from journalism school in 1999, back when getting your own column in a newspaper was still considered a thing. He doubled down and graduated from broadcast journalism school five years later, which led to a move to Toronto and a career with The Sports Network (TSN). From behind-the-scenes production work, he moved into the digital realm, where he had his own hoops column (At the Buzzer), while regularly live streaming and chatting with fans during broadcasts as the character known as LeBlog James. He was also a key contributor to TSN and CTV’s Olympic programming during the 2012 London Games.

Eric eventually found his way into the sports betting field in 2016 and has been a mainstay ever since. He was tagged on Twitter as a Top 10 NBA sharp during the 2021 season and has been interviewed about basketball and his handicapping process on shows from Vancouver to India. Eric is now a jack-of-all-sports at Covers, where his predictions span the alphabet soup: NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, F1, WNBA, Euro, and Copa.

When making picks, he focuses on finding value first and foremost, and ensuring readers have all the information they need to make an informed choice.

Popular Content

Covers is verified safe by: Evalon Logo GPWA Logo GDPR Logo GeoTrust Logo Evalon Logo