World Series Betting Guide: Diamondbacks at Rangers, Game 1

Baseball has you covered if you want a large inventory of options to bet.

From moneylines to run totals to first-five-inning wagers, we have plenty of ways to bet on the World Series. Outlooks can be vastly different due to starting pitchers, and a wealth of advanced stats can let us know if an individual pitcher, a bullpen, or a team is due for positive -- or negative -- regression.

Using numberFire's projections as a guide, which MLB odds from FanDuel Sportsbook are most appealing for Game 1?

Note: Lines are subject to change throughout the day after this article is published. All stats come from FanGraphs and Baseball Savant unless noted otherwise. Please check here to make sure you're seeing the most updated projections.

Arizona Diamondbacks at Texas Rangers, Game 1

F5 Over 4.5 Runs (-114)

I'm expecting early runs in Game 1 tonight.

While both squads are starting their top pitchers, both Zac Gallen and Nathan Eovaldi have been prone to their fair share of early blow-ups.

Gallen enters Game 1 having started four games for the Arizona Diamondbacks this postseason. He started off strong with a pair of wins but lost both of his starts in the NLCS. He's pitched to a 5.24 ERA and 6.93 FIP through 22.1 innings -- a continuation of his struggles toward the end of the regular season.

Gallen's ERA jumped from 3.04 during the first half of the year to 4.03 in the second half. His strikeout rate dropped somewhat over that span (26.5% to 25.4%), but it's fallen off a cliff in the postseason. Gallen's striking out just 13.5% of opposing hitters through four starts, and he has yet to K more than four hitters in a single game.

Within the first five innings, Gallen has given up two, one, five, and two runs across his four postseason starts.

The Rangers' offense has crushed righties this season, so it's fair to think they'll be able to handle Gallen. In that split, Texas ranked third in wOBA (.339), second in ISO (.195), and fourth in wRC+ (114).

On the opposite side, Nathan Eovaldi will make the first World Series start of his career -- though he did appear in two games as a reliever during Boston's 2018 championship run.

The righty is fresh off one of his best regular seasons, during which he pitched to a 3.63 ERA and 3.88 FIP while striking out 22.9% of opposing hitters.

He's taken things up a notch during the playoffs, racking up a 2.42 ERA and 2.68 FIP while striking out 26.9% of hitters across four starts. Still, four of the seven runs he's allowed this postseason have come in the first five innings. That comes on the heels of a final month of starts that saw Eovaldi allow 3.5 first-five-inning runs per game.

Granted, he was coming off an injury, but I'm bullish that the D-backs will be able to get to him early. Against righties, Arizona finished in the top half of the league with a .320 wOBA. They averaged a modest 2.5 first-five-inning runs per game during the regular season but scored three and four in the final two games of the NLCS.

It doesn't hurt to have some trends on our side, as well.

Seven of the last 10 World Series Game 1s have gone over 4.5 first-five-inning runs, including each of the last five.

The last 10 World Series Game 1s have averaged 5.6 runs in the first five innings. The last five Game 1s have averaged 7.6 in the first five.

Per EV Analytics, first-five-inning overs were just 77-85-12 in Arizona's games during the regular season. Only three of their 12 postseason games thus far have gone over, but they have averaged 2.5 first-five-inning runs themselves.

Meanwhile, first-five-inning overs went 92-72-10 in Texas' regular season games, the third-best mark in baseball. On top of that, they averaged a league-leading 3.8 first-five-inning runs in home games, while Arizona allowed the 11th-most first-five-inning total (2.7).

Arizona has done a good job limiting early damage this postseason, but they struggled to do so in the regular season. On the opposite side, the Rangers have mashed early all season long. Throw in the potential for early jitters from the pitchers, and I'm expecting at least five runs through the first five innings tonight.

If we're expecting early runs, that means someone is going to have to rack up counting stats. Annie Nader's favorite player props are a great place to find potential value if you're looking to put together a Same Game Parlay, but FanDuel has you covered regardless. They're offering a 50% Profit Boost to use on any wager for Game 1 of the World Series.

Looking for more MLB betting opportunities? Check out all of the MLB odds at FanDuel Sportsbook.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.