YRFI/NRFI Best Bets, 9/17: Wonderful Woo Looks to Stymie Yanks
- Read on to get the best YRFI/NRFI MLB predictions for Sept 17’s slate
- ROY candidate Gil takes on surging Mariners
- It’s a Coors Field special with Montgomery vs Feltner
- Read on for all the analysis on these matchups and then take our advice to the BetUS Sportsbook.
If you’ve been with us all year, you know how much we love Tuesdays in the majors. No football to contend with. Almost no day games, so there is a full slate at night. Everyone’s in action, and all of our experts are on their game. It’s just a loaded evening and tonight’s one of the last ones of the regular season so we’re putting our best foot forward and providing three top-notch MLB picks.
3 NRFI/YRFI Bets for 9/17
1. Yankees vs Mariners: Woo a Great Option for M’s
We’ve visited pitcher-friendly T-Mobile Park for a handful of first-inning bets lately, and they usually work out. We see another opportunity on Tuesday as the Bombers take on Bryan Woo, who is doing some tremendous work on the mound.
Woo took a perfect game into the seventh inning against the Padres his last time out before settling for 6⅔ innings of two-run ball and his eighth win in 10 decisions. He now has the lowest ERA (2.38) of anyone in the American League with at least 19 starts and the lowest WHIP (0.82) of anyone with at least eight starts.
The 24-year-old right-hander tossed six scoreless at Yankee Stadium on May 21. He’s allowed a total of eight earned runs in 57 total frames between innings 1-3, so he almost always starts games off on the right foot. We know what damage the Yankees can do in that inning (or any other), but Woo is up to the task.
Give Luis Gil some credit. A lot of rookies who hit that mid- to late-season wall never really recover. But Gil has found another gear, going 4-2 with a 2.74 ERA over his last nine starts.
In that same series where Woo dominated the Yankees back in May, Gil did the same against the Mariners (two days later). He limited Seattle to a solitary hit on a fourth-inning infield single and fanned eight in 6⅓ scoreless frames.
Gil has shined in the first inning this year (1.73 ERA) and will be up against the team that ranks last in the AL in first-inning scoring percentage at home (21.33).
2. A’s vs Cubs: And if the Wind’s Blowing Out…
Chicago has 12 games left and a five-game deficit in the wild card, so it has to be just about perfect from here on out. Probably not going to happen but at least it gets Oakland, Washington and Cincinnati on the remaining schedule, as well as a Philadelphia team that should have the NL East sewn up and less to play for.
After a 9-2 win in Monday’s series opener behind a big night for Dansby Swanson, the Cubs turn to Jordan Wicks in this one, not the safest option for a team that likely needs to run the table. He enters with a 5.27 ERA after getting pasted at Dodger Stadium last week.
Baaang! Dansby Swanson for 3! 💥 pic.twitter.com/t6mDv8zVLs
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) September 17, 2024
The former first-round pick has given up six runs in his nine first innings while allowing an alarming five home runs. Only four teams have hit more home runs than the A’s.
Oakland gives the ball to rookie Mitch Spence, who has quietly thrown more innings than any other first-year player in the American League with 137⅓. Seven of them came in an impressive outing at Houston his last time out.
The 26-year-old has seen plenty of first-inning traffic, allowing opponents to hit .281 in that frame, the highest mark against him out of any of the first five innings. Opponents also have a healthy .806 OPS against Spence when he pitches on the road, and the Cubs scored all nine of their runs in the first four innings on Monday. Take the MLB odds for an early score here.
Bet on Athletics vs Cubs First Inning to Score – YES
3. Diamondbacks vs Rockies: Mile High Madness
This is a Coors Field extravaganza between two pitchers who have been pretty giving all year. It has all the makings of a YRFI result, but let’s look a bit closer at the numbers before making our call.
Ryan Feltner starts for the Rockies against a Diamondbacks crew that’s just 7-10 in its last 17 as it struggles to nail down a wild card spot. He enters at 2-10 with a 4.89 ERA, with one of the 10 losses coming in a rough one at Arizona to start the year.
The Ohio State product has felt the Coors Field crush, posting a 6.25 ERA in his 12 starts there. And he’s had plenty of problems in the first inning this year. Opponents have compiled six home runs, nine stolen bases and 12 walks in Feltner’s 27 opening frames, during which he’s posted a 5.67 ERA.
As mentioned many times this year, Arizona is a top-notch first-inning attack. It enters Tuesday leading the majors in scoring percentage in that frame at 38.0%.
Jordan Montgomery has a much better record (8-6) than Feltner but a much worse ERA (6.25), which says plenty of about the win-loss stat. In fact, he’s tied with Kyle Hendricks for the worst ERA in the majors among the 122 pitchers with at least 100 innings.
Plenty of the runs have come in during the first inning, when Montgomery has 6.16 ERA while letting opponents pile up a .308 average. He will be making his Coors Field debut against a Rockies lineup that is 12th in the majors in runs per first at home (0.58).
This is the kind of MLB bet that won’t pay out much but can be tagged with another bet online to up the winnings.
Bet on Diamondbacks vs Rockies First Inning to Score – YES
Take A Look At These Other 2 MLB Special Articles
- YRFI/NRFI Best Bets, 9/18: Toronto’s Bowden Francis looks to maintain dominance.
- YRFI/NRFI Bets, 9/13: Vets, Rookies Alike Make for NRFI Options.
Question Of The Day
What are the best remaining races in the majors?
There are two. The contest between the Mets and Braves (and maybe the Diamondbacks) for the last wild card spot in the NL is a doozy, with Atlanta hosting New York next week. And we told you weeks ago to get on board with the Tigers, who are just 1½ games in back of Minnesota for the last spot in the AL. Seattle is sitting at two games behind the Twins.
Odds and information are accurate at the time of writing. Please check with official sources for the latest updates before placing any bets
