YRFI/NRFI Picks 8/7: Red Sox + Royals = Early Runs!
- Red Sox aim for sweep in Kansas City
- Mets seek bounce-back effort at Coors Field
- Read on to analyze the first-inning scoring situation for these games before visiting the BetUS Sportsbook.
Keep an eye on the MLB news wire Wednesday and the next few days for updates as it relates to wet weather. We had a couple of rainouts on Tuesday and as the remnants of Hurricane Debby hit the East Coast, there could be more heading into the weekend. Meanwhile, we’ll keep plugging away with some RIFI picks, including these gems below.
3 YRFI/NRFI Picks for Aug. 7
1. Red Sox vs Royals: Kutter vs Cole in KC
The streaky Boston Red Sox are surging once again and looking to finish off a sweep in Kansas City. In doing so, they’ve won a potential tiebreaker with the Royals and could leapfrog them entirely and claim (for now) one of the three wild-card spots in the American League.
As part of this latest surge, Boston has scored at least six runs in a remarkable 13 of 17 games since the All-Star break. It leads the majors in runs, OPS, batting average and doubles in that time frame, and the team is tied with the Yankees for home runs.
That’s the machine that Kansas City’s Cole Ragans has to contend with. Ragans stifled the Red Sox over seven innings at Fenway Park last month, but he’s been more hittable at home for much of the year and has struggled a bit since that encounter. The 26-year-old southpaw has a 4.67 ERA and has walked seven batters in 17⅓ innings since leaving Boston.
Ragans has been pretty good out of the gate most starts but will be facing an immediate challenge from Jarren Duran and the Red Sox lineup.
As for Kutter Crawford, who starts for Boston, we have a similar scenario. He dominated the Royals at Fenway Park last month but has since hit a wall, giving up 16 runs in 15 innings over the last three starts.
Home runs are a problem for Crawford. That’s especially true in the first inning, where he’s allowed seven of them, third-most in the AL. The 28-year-old owns a 4.91 ERA in that frame and Kansas City ranks fourth overall in first-inning scoring percentage (30.43).
Cole Ragans 🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/RCQXH1tYEE
— 643Royals (@643royals) August 3, 2024
2. Mets vs Rockies: Expect Early Scoring in Mile High City
We nailed a NRFI pick at Coors Field on Tuesday. We’ll head back to the Mile High City again for a different kind of matchup as the New York Mets and Colorado Rockies continue their series.
Ryan Feltner starts this one for the hosts. He’s posted three straight quality starts but two were on the road and the home one was against a San Francisco team that was really struggling to score runs at the time.
The Ohio State product has felt the Coors Field crunch, posting a 6.14 ERA in his nine starts there. He also has a 6.55 mark in the first inning overall. Feltner managed to get through one frame unscathed at New York last month but ended up allowing four runs in only 3⅔ innings – and that was away from Coors.
Paul Blackburn will be making his second start for the Mets. His first – at Anaheim last week – was a solid team debut as the one-time All-Star allowed a run in six frames.
Blackburn has struggled in the first inning, though, giving up eight runs in his 10 opening frames. Opponents have three home runs and a healthy .923 OPS in the first against him, and Colorado is ninth in the majors in first-inning scoring percentage at home (34.62).
Mets-Rockies First Inning to Score – YES
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Take A Look At These Other 2 MLB Special Articles
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- MLB Player Prop Bets 8/7: Cash in With 2 Cy Young Candidates
3. Rays vs Cardinals: Fedde to Feed off Home Crowd
Remember to visit our MLB picks page, where a panel of experts is laying out all you need for bets on each game on the docket. That’ll likely include something on this matchup in St. Louis, and we’ve got you covered on the RIFI front here.
Erick Fedde’s debut with the Cardinals was a bit rocky. He allowed five runs in five innings in a loss at Wrigley Field, which isn’t the way to get the new fanbase behind you.
Fedde has another chance to win over some Cards fans when he makes his home debut for them in this one. He did toss a scoreless first against the Cubs last week and now has a 1.64 ERA in that frame.
The 31-year-old’s longest start this year was an 8⅓-inning effort against Tampa Bay, which managed just two runs and struck out nine times against Fedde. The Rays have four total runs over their last two games and should give Fedde a chance to start strong.
Taj Bradley gets the ball for Tampa Bay. He gave up four runs in five frames his last time out, but prior to that had a remarkable nine-start run in which he was 5-1 with a 0.82 ERA. The 23-year-old is clearly figuring it all out and should improve upon his 2.40 first-inning ERA.
St. Louis has a total of six runs over its last three games and ranks 26th in the majors in first-inning scoring percentage (21.93). The under is 7½ in MLB lines, so there should be a premium on runs.
Rays-Cardinals First Inning to Score – NO
Question Of The Day
Any other MLB bets that look appetizing?
So often a guy coming off a no-hitter has a bit of a clunker the next time out. Blake Snell gets to face the Nationals in his first outing since his historic gem, which helps, but I’d lean away from the two-time Cy Young Award winner in that one. The odds makers will likely expect something special against a team like Washington, but consider going against the grain.
Odds and information are accurate at the time of writing. Please check with official sources for the latest updates before placing any bets.
