It’s Friday night, and the entire major league circuit will be in action. There is a multitude of quality arms taking the hill, but I’ve pinpointed two pairings that are primed to throw up matching zeroes. So let’s dive into my top NRFI plays of the slate.
Kansas City Royals vs. Tampa Bay Rays – 7:10 pm ET
This matchup will feature two of the best young arms in the show. Getting the ball first will be Shane McClanahan. The Rays’ lefty has been absolutely lethal this season. He enters with an 11-5 record, a 2.28 ERA, and a 0.87 WHIP. Those kinds of numbers are from his electric stuff that has been unhittable at times this season. McClanahan’s strikeout and whiff rates are amongst the top seven percent of all qualified pitchers. His stuff makes him a challenging assignment in the first inning. Through 22 starts, he has a 2.86 ERA with a 0.73 WHIP' and a 28 percent strikeout rate in the first inning. Tonight he gets to face a Royals lineup that ranks 25th in first-inning runs per game, and they have been cold early of late as they’ve failed to score in the first in each of their last three games.