The wild card round comes to a close, and it was a wild one. We now move into the divisional series where we’ll hit you with some NRFI bets for October 4.
All four series get started on Saturday, so where is plenty to choose from for these NRFI and YRFI props for October 4. Come check out what we have cooked up for this slate of games.
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MLB NRFI and YRFI Picks – October 4
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Philadelphia Phillies
First Pitch – 6:38 pm EST
Citizens Bank Park – Philadelphia, PA
Broadcast – TBS
The Dodgers and their sweep of the Cincinnati Reds provided them with a benefit not afford to any of the other three teams that moved forward – two days rest. It also allowed them to keep their pitching mostly in check, which is why Shohei Ohtani will get the ball to start Game 1 of this series. Ohtani closed the season with a remarkable September. He started three games and didn’t allow a single run – all while racking up 18 strikeouts. One of those starts came against these very Phillies, who he held scoreless over 5.0. Even if the Phillies are going to end that run, I doubt they do in the first inning.
That means our NRFI will likely hinge on whether or not we can get a clean first inning from Cristopher Sanchez. He too closed the season on a solid run. He didn’t allow an earned run over his last 16.0 innings of the regular season. The last time he allowed runs was against these Dodgers, but he did make it through a quick first inning, which saw him only surrender an infield hit. As a result, I like his chances to get us the NRFI here.
NRFI/YRFI Bet for October 4: No (-135)
Detroit Tigers vs. Seattle Mariners
First Pitch – 8:38 pm EST
T-Mobile Park – Seattle, WA
Broadcast – FS1
For the first game in the Pacific Northwest, I like the YRFI instead of our usual NRFI. The biggest part of that reason is the Tigers going to the bullpen for a start in this one. Troy Melton gets the ball in what should be an opener situation. His only other appearance in the playoffs saw him surrender four runs to the Guardians, who only scored 10 runs in the playoffs in total. Surrendering 40% of their run scoring in just 0.1 innings is already a bad sign, but so are his home run numbers. Over his last six appearances, he’s allowed a dinger in four of them. Now he’ll try to get through Randy Arozarena, Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez. I’d count on something coming across the plate there.
While we only need one run to score, I don’t have the Tigers’ chance to get one in either. George Kirby starts for the Mariners and he wasn’t his usual dominant self this season. He posted a 4.21 ERA on the year and put up a 5.40 ERA in the month of September. He faced the Tigers one other time this year, back in July. In that start, he was tagged for four runs in just 5.0 innings of work. That included a RBI sacrifice fly for Riley Greene in the first inning.
NRFI/YRFI Bet for October 4: Yes (+120)
If you’d like even more info to help make your NRFI and YRFI picks for October 4, check out the MLB Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar with their MLB picks today.
