# MLB NRFI Picks Today — Thursday, August 20, 2026

> **NRFI (No Run First Inning)** is a bet that neither team scores in the first inning of an MLB game. Historically ~55–60% of games are scoreless through the first, so NRFI is a slight favorite on average — but the edge lives in the specific pitcher matchup.

**Live tool (updated daily):** https://heatcheckhq.io/mlb/nrfi
**Games ranked today:** 9

## Today's top NRFI pick

**NYY @ BAL** — 73% combined NRFI · Oriole Park at Camden Yards · 6:35 PM
  - **Gerrit Cole** (RHP): 80% NRFI, 3.22 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 7-game NRFI streak
  - **Kyle Bradish** (RHP): 92% NRFI, 3.65 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 10-game NRFI streak
  - Gerrit Cole vs. Kyle Bradish models to a 73% chance of a scoreless first inning — the joint probability that neither NYY nor BAL plates a run in the opening frame. Gerrit Cole has been sharp out of the gate (12/15 scoreless 1st). Kyle Bradish matches it in his own half (22/24 scoreless 1st). BAL rarely dents the scoreboard in the 1st.

HeatCheck HQ ranks all 9 games on today's slate by combined first-inning strength — both starters' own scoreless-first rates, the lineups they face, ballpark, weather, and umpire. See the full ranked board, the rest of today's best NRFI bets, and the games to avoid:

**→ https://heatcheckhq.io/mlb/nrfi**