Opening Day: Overreactions for every game as MLB season begins

theScore's Michael Bradburn overreacted to everything that happened on MLB's Opening Day.

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NYY vs. SF | PIT vs. NYM | CWS vs. MIL | WSH vs. CHC | MIN vs. BAL | DET vs. SD | TB vs. STL | BOS vs. CIN | TEX vs. PHI | LAA vs. HOU | ARI vs. LAD | CLE vs. SEA

Guardians 6, Mariners 4

DeLauter does it best

In an Opening Day defined by impressive debuts of Wetherholt, Murakami, and Carson Benge, it's Chase DeLauter who punctuated it all emphatically. Not only did he hit two homers in his regular-season debut to help propel the Guardians to a win, he also reminded us all that he debuted in the postseason. He's already a veteran compared to those other guys. Destined for greatness.

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That's it for Opening Day 2026. Thanks for overreacting along with us. It's still technically Opening Day for six more teams on Friday, but you'll have to overreact to those all on your own.

Friday's slate:

• Yankees (C. Schlittler) @ Giants (Ray) - 4:35 p.m. ET
• Athletics (L. Severino) @ Blue Jays (Gausman) - 7:07 p.m. ET*
• Rockies (K. Freeland) @ Marlins (S. Alcantara) - 7:10 p.m. ET*
• Royals (C. Ragans) @ Braves (C. Sale) - 7:15 p.m. ET*
• Angels (Y. Kikuchi) @ Astros (M. Burrows) - 8:15 p.m. ET
• Tigers (F. Valdez) @ Padres (M. King) - 9:40 p.m. ET
• Guardians (G. Williams) @ Mariners (G. Kirby) - 9:45 p.m. ET
• Diamondbacks (R. Nelson) @ Dodgers (E. Sheehan) - 10:10 p.m. ET

* Opening Day game

Donovan will be a difference-maker for the Mariners

Here's a blind comparison brought to you by Brendan Donovan's home run in his first at-bat as a member of the Mariners. The following table features the 2022-25 stats of Donovan against another popular infielder.

The mystery player is Bo Bichette, who got a three-year, $126-million contract in free agency this winter. Meanwhile, Seattle acquired Donovan for Jurrangelo Cijntje, Tai Peete, and a competitive balance pick. That's four full seasons of data. Makes you think.

Dodgers 8, Diamondbacks 2

The Dodgers may never trail again this season

It was nice of the Diamondbacks to jump out to a 2-0 lead against the defending champs to show everyone that the Dodgers are, in fact, beatable. Alas, it was short-lived, as Andy Pages hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the fifth inning. I'm not sure how any team grabs a lead over L.A. for the rest of the year, let alone wins a game.

Will Ferrell's best role since 'Step Brothers'

Will Ferrell, also known for his role as Mattel CEO in "Barbie" and Guy At Los Angeles Kings Games, drove a blue convertible into Dodger Stadium with Freddie Freeman and Miguel Rojas repping their back-to-back World Series trophies. Do we still like him?

The villains arrive

We at theScore really hope that Freddie Freeman enjoyed his offseason vacation in the Matrix.

Angels 3, Astros 0

Death, taxes, Trout single-handedly carrying the Angels

The three absolute certainties in life. We're a long way from peak Mike Trout, but it's nice to be reminded of his prowess on Opening Day. His latest long ball is the fifth Opening Day homer of his storied career. Sadly, there still aren't many other reasons to watch the Angels, but tuning in occasionally to witness one of the greatest to ever do it is worth it.

Learn Soriano's name

If you were to sit down and rank the Opening Day starters ahead of Thursday's action, everyone except José Soriano's immediate family would've put him last. And yet, he tossed six shutout innings against the Astros with seven strikeouts.

Phillies 5, Rangers 3

Duran proves he's the greatest closer in Phillies history

It doesn't sound real, but Jhoan Duran is the first closer in Phillies history to record a save at home on Opening Day.

This franchise has been around since 1883. I guess when you consider that the best closer in its storied history is Tug McGraw, who last pitched for Philadelphia in 1984, this stat becomes a little more believable.

Sánchez is MLB's best starter

Cristopher Sánchez continues to absolutely amaze. He's the only starting pitcher with a sub-3.00 ERA over 280 innings or more since the 2024 All-Star break. It's time for this guy to win NL Cy Young.

Red Sox 3, Reds 0

First base is also the hot corner when Anthony is batting

First basemen, you're on notice. While Roman Anthony is at the plate, you have to be ready for 100-mph projectiles coming your way. The young Red Sox star went 3-for-4 and seems poised to be in the AL MVP conversation all season long. Don't you think the Orioles would like to hit the undo button on drafting Jackson Holliday first overall - 78 spots higher than Anthony?

Cardinals 9, Rays 7

No overreaction here. Just watch this Burleson homer

Rays-Cardinals was tied 1-1 heading into the sixth inning. By the end of the frame, St. Louis led 9-7, punctuated by Alec Burleson's massive two-run dinger. Make the Cardinals' whole offense out of sixth-inning performances? I don't know, man.

Wetherholt should've gone No. 1 in the 2024 draft

This doesn't even seem like an overreaction at this point. Travis Bazzana, Chase Burns, Charlie Condon, Nick Kurtz, Hagen Smith, and Jac Caglianone heard their names called before Wetherholt. It's been a while since a Cardinals player annoyed all of Major League Baseball by being great. Wetherholt is the next one.

Tigers 8, Padres 2

Give McGonigle the AL Rookie of the Year award now

Kevin "The Professor" McGonigle starts his MLB career with a two-run double and adds another double in his next at-bat. Look at this guy hustle out of the box. That's a ballplayer. He finished the day with four hits. You know what, pencil him in for AL MVP too.

Orioles 2, Twins 1

The Orioles are who we thought they would be a year ago

The Orioles were expected to take a big step forward last year. And sure, their hitters still looked lost against Twins starter Joe Ryan. But Trevor Rogers is here to steady the rotation. So long as Pete Alonso doesn't turn into Chris Davis, Baltimore should be an exciting fringe contender.

Brewers 14, White Sox 2

Garbage time homer for Murakami's first

Murakami is a fascinating guy to follow this year, and his highlight reel by season's end might include a lot of garbage time homers. Much has been made about Murakami's perceived inability to hit high velocity. Drilling a 91-mph cutter while Chicago trails 14-1 won't do much to dismiss that criticism.

Misiorowski is him

No one doubted Jacob Misiorowski more than I did. He seemed destined for a bullpen role. But this guy can pitch. He's the first Brewers pitcher with 11 strikeouts in an Opening Day start. Maybe this is simply the benefit of facing the White Sox.

Meidroth is the greatest hitter in White Sox history who's not currently suing the team

It's pretty wild that the White Sox had never started a season with a leadoff home run in their 125-year history - until now. That honor belongs to Chase Meidroth, who, unlike Frank Thomas, isn't currently suing the franchise for using his name and number without his permission.

Nationals 10, Cubs 4

Pitchers need to stop going to the WBC

Matthew Boyd is one of multiple starters who's struggled in their Opening Day start after pitching in the World Baseball Classic. The Nationals really got to the left-hander in the fourth inning. He finished his day with six earned runs on six hits and one walk over 3 2/3 innings. Did he have seven strikeouts through three shutout innings? Sure. But that's not important anymore.

Is there still time for Cubs to cancel Pete Crow-Armstrong's extension?

Crow-Armstrong began the 2026 season by doing something that's all too familiar to Cubs fans from the second half of last year's campaign: striking out.

His six-year, $115-million extension doesn't officially kick in until the beginning of 2027. Chicago should pull the chute on this before the game even ends.

Mets 11, Pirates 7

Pirates need to hire Embiid as manager

With due respect to Don Kelly, who might still prove to be a good manager, Joel Embiid is the leader the Pirates' clubhouse needs right now. What is Oneil Cruz doing here? On Opening Day. With his ace on the mound. Paul Skenes fails to make it out of the first inning for the first time in his MLB career because of this. Pick up the phone and call Embiid immediately.

Home-run celebrations are back

Celebrations like this got kind of tired when every team started having one, and they became pretty generic. The Pirates' celebration rules. We're so back.

Also, obligatory: Brandon Lowe, who has two homers in his first two at-bats with the Pirates, is on pace for 324 homers with his new team. Years after getting fleeced by the Rays in the Chris Archer trade, the Pirates are vindicated.

Brewers won the Freddy Peralta trade

Two batters into Fastball Freddy's tenure with the New York Mets, he's given up a hit and a homer. There's just no way Brandon Sproat and Jett Williams end up being worse than this guy.

Yankees 7, Giants 0

The Yankees turned to small ball because Judge is cooked

Eight of the Yankees' nine starters had at least one hit in their season-opening win against the Giants on Wednesday night. The lone guy without a knock? Captain Aaron Judge, who followed up his three-strikeout performance in the WBC final with a golden sombrero.

Ban ABS

MLB had its first-ever ABS challenge, and that's enough for me: Get rid of it.

Not only did Netflix fumble broadcasting this by almost missing it entirely, but José Caballero was proven wrong on appeal, giving the umpires a 1-0 lead in the ABS era. Out here on Day 1 of the season proving that umps are competent? Embarrassing.

Ringing in the baseball season with ... Jameis Winston, Bert Kreischer, and something called a Tony Tony Chopper?

Nothing says Opening Day quite like a journeyman NFL quarterback, a comedian drinking beer in a kayak, and some product placement.

What a confusing cast of characters.

I thought the booth of Matt Vasgersian, Hunter Pence, and CC Sabathia was actually quite good. However, I did catch myself thinking wistfully about how the upcoming CBA negotiations might at least postpone the next iteration of this. There's mercifully only two years left on this broadcast partnership either way.

If you were interested in watching the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants play baseball, you'll get to experience that Friday and Saturday.