MLB All-Star Game NRFI Picks & Predictions (Tuesday)

The MLB All-Star Game offers us the opportunity to bet on a No Run First Inning (NRFI) or a Yes Run First Inning (YRFI) reult. Which is the best way to attack the first inning of the 2025 MLB All-Star Game? Here’s our top MLB All-Star Game NRFI picks and predictions.

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Best MLB All-Star Game No Runs First Inning (NRFI) Pick

(Odds courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook)

American League (-110) at National League (-110) | O/U 7.0 (-120/+100)

Starting Pitchers: Tarik Skubal vs. Paul Skenes

There’s no shortage of talented hitters for the two All-Star teams. That’s the case annually, and runs have been hard to come by in the first inning in the past decade.

The National League All-Star team scored two runs in the first inning of the 2022 All-Star Game. They also scored a run in the first inning of the 2016 MLB All-Star Game, and the American League All-Star team scored once in the first inning of the 2015 MLB All-Star Game and three in the first inning of the 2014 MLB All-Star Game.

Add it all up, and the MLB All-Star Game has had a scoreless first inning in six out of the last 10 Midsummer Classics, including six of the last seven.

Both clubs are starting top-shelf aces. According to FanGraphs, Paul Skenes has recorded the following stats in 20 starts spanning 121 innings this season:

2.01 ERA
2.49 xERA
3.06 xFIP
3.17 SIERA
0.93 WHIP
6.4% Walk Rate
27.9% Strikeout Rate
13.8% SwStr%
29.2% CSW%
108 Stuff+
111 Location+
117 Pitching+

Skenes is also a whiz early in games. He has a 0.39 ERA, 2.77 xFIP, 0.91 WHIP, 5.6% walk rate and 30.6% strikeout rate in his first time through the order this season. Additionally, according to Baseball Reference, Skenes has allowed zero runs, two walks, and 13 hits in the first inning this season, while striking out 22. He’s thrown a scoreless first inning in all 20 of his starts.

Tarik Skubal is also having a sensational season, with the following stats in 19 starts spanning 121 innings:

2.23 ERA
2.43 xERA
2.36 xFIP
2.38 SIERA
0.83 WHIP
3.5% Walk Rate
33.4% Strikeout Rate
17.1% SwStr%
32.6% CSW%
117 Stuff+
106 Location+
121 Pitching+

Skubal has a blistering 1.94 ERA, 2.58 xFIP, 0.71 WHIP, 2.9% walk rate and 32.2% strikeout rate in his first time through the order this season. He’s twirled a scoreless first inning in 16 out of 19 starts in 2025. As a result, the NRFI is the appealing wagering side of the first inning in the MLB All-Star Game.

Pick: NRFI (-130)

Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.