MLB Opening Day 2025 takeaways: Orioles' home run bonanza, Skenes vs. Alcantara, Phillies and Guardians extra-innings victories stand out

Yahoo

28-03-2025

With 28 teams in action, Opening Day was sure to bring its fair share of excitement and surprises, and Thursday's contests did not disappoint.
The Dodgers logged another victory, and so did the Marlins and White Sox. Two Yankees not named Aaron Judge hit home runs, and so did Tyler O'Neill. Two games went to extra innings, and nobody got no-hit.
Here are some of the highlights and takeaways from Opening Day 2025.
The Orioles can't stop hitting homers
It was a hot start north of the border for the Birds, as Baltimore crushed an Opening Day franchise-record six (!) home runs in their 12-2 romp of the Blue Jays. Baltimore got two dingers apiece from catcher Adley Rutschman and center fielder Cedric Mullins, a solo shot from Jordan Westburg and, most incredibly, a homer from new right fielder Tyler O'Neill, which made Thursday the sixth consecutive Opening Day on which he has left the yard, an MLB record. Seeing Rutschman in particular slugging like that has to be encouraging for the Orioles after his poor second half at the plate last year.
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Overall, it was a tremendous display from an Orioles lineup that might need to compensate for a pitching staff that features a fair number of question marks. But if Thursday was any indication, the Birds might just have enough firepower to do exactly that. And to think: MVP candidate Gunnar Henderson isn't even in the lineup yet, as he opened the season on the injured list and is expected back at some point in April.
Chicago White Sox … win?
Besides Baltimore's rout of Toronto, the most dominant Opening Day victory came courtesy of … the Chicago White Sox? Last year, the White Sox were shut out on Opening Day and began the season 3-22, an awful start to what turned out to be a historically terrible season. This year is likely to feature a boatload of losses as well, but at least the 2025 squad got off to a more enjoyable start.
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Sean Burke was stellar across six shutout innings before late homers from Andrew Benintendi and Lenyn Sosa put the game out of reach en route to an 8-1 win over the Angels, marking new skipper Will Venable's first career managerial victory. This series doesn't resume until Saturday, so the Sox can bask in the glow of being undefeated for an extra day.
Phillies strike out 19 times and blow a save, win anyway
For six innings against MacKenzie Gore, the Phillies' lineup looked positively helpless. The talented Nationals southpaw was straight dealing from the get-go, racking up 13 strikeouts with zero walks and just one hit allowed. For Philadelphia, it was an ominous first few frames for a lineup that looked frighteningly similar to what we saw in the second half and in October last year.
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Then Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber happened. With Gore out of the game, the two sluggers pounced on the Nationals' bullpen for two homers in the seventh to retake the lead and provide ace Zack Wheeler some well-earned run support. The vibes quickly swung back in the other direction an inning later, when offseason acquisition Jordan Romano coughed up two runs in his Phillies debut, which allowed the Nationals to tie the game and push it to extras.
In the 10th, the Phillies' bats finally prevailed over the weak Washington bullpen, taking the opener 7-3. It wasn't the most comfortable inaugural victory for a Philadelphia team with championship expectations, but hey, a win is a win.
Paul Skenes vs. Sandy Alcantara delivers. As for their teams?
The best pitching matchup of Opening Day featured a former Cy Young winner in Sandy Alcantara in his first start back from Tommy John surgery and a possible future Cy Young winner in Paul Skenes making the first start of his super-hyped sophomore season. Alcantara had the edge early, holding the Pirates hitless until Ke'Bryan Hayes singled with two outs in the fifth, but Pittsburgh ended up taking the lead and knocking Alcantara out of the game that same inning.
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That seemed to set the stage for Skenes to cruise to his first Opening Day win, especially once Nick Gonzales added a two-run homer to make it 4-1 Pirates in the sixth. But then Skenes' command wavered, ending his outing earlier than he would've preferred and opening the door for a Marlins comeback. Sure enough, the Fish fought back over the final few frames, culminating in a walk-off single from Kyle Stowers off Pittsburgh closer David Bednar to claim a surprising 5-4 Opening Day victory for Miami.
Padres beat Braves thanks to superior NRI
Atlanta knocked San Diego starter Michael King out of the game in the third inning and carried a 4-3 lead into the seventh thanks to homers from Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley. Then things took a turn for the worse for the Braves, as veteran righty reliever Hector Neris allowed a pinch-hit game-tying homer to Gavin Sheets — a sentence that wouldn't have made a whole lot of sense a few months ago, considering that both Neris and Sheets were non-roster invites who signed minor-league deals this spring.
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But sure enough, there they were, facing off in a high-leverage spot on Opening Day for two playoff hopefuls. And Sheets came out on top. He tied for the Cactus League lead with six homers this spring, an intriguing introduction to his new team after he spent the first eight years of his career in the White Sox organization before Chicago non-tendered him. His power evidently carried over to Opening Day, providing a memorable moment for the 28-year-old Sheets as he looks to establish himself in San Diego's lineup.
The Padres eventually seized a lead they wouldn't relinquish, as the final five San Diego relievers combined to throw 5 1/3 hitless innings to secure a 7-4 victory.
Wilyer Abreu reminds everyone that he is good at baseball
On a Red Sox roster loaded with star veterans and with immense hype surrounding the incoming wave of top prospects, a player such as Wilyer Abreu could get lost in the shuffle. But the 25-year-old outfielder, who posted a 114 wRC+ and won a Gold Glove as a rookie in 2024, reminded everyone of his presence with a monster showing for Boston on Opening Day: 3-for-3 with a walk and two homers, including the go-ahead blast in the top of the ninth that put the Red Sox ahead 5-2.
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It was Abreu's second career two-homer game — his first also came in Texas in August — and a much-needed offensive display on an otherwise quiet day for the Boston lineup, which produced only three hits from players not named Abreu. The lefty-swinging Abreu is still largely a platoon bat who won't face many southpaws, but as long as he plays sterling outfield defense and mashes against right-handers, he'll remain a crucial cog in Boston's efforts to return to October.
Guardians win a wild one in Kansas City
Cleveland had to scramble before the season even started, as right-hander Tanner Bibee was scratched due to food poisoning hours before first pitch. But just as he did so many times last year when the rotation collapsed around him, Ben Lively stepped up and did an admirable job keeping the Guardians in the game, matching Royals ace left-hander Cole Ragans for five innings.
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DH Kyle Manzardo slugged a go-ahead homer off Kansas City reliever Angel Zerpa in the sixth, marking the first career home run against a southpaw for the lefty-swinging Manzardo. After Emmanuel Clase was unable to slam the door in the ninth — not exactly the most promising first outing coming off his high-profile struggles in October — Manzardo provided another key knock in the 10th against another lefty in Sam Long, giving the Guardians a lead they'd hold for a 7-4 victory.
Manzardo finished the day with a double, a triple and a homer, an outstanding game for a young hitter for whom Cleveland has ultra-high hopes. If Manzardo can prove capable against same-handed pitching, it would be a massive development for a Guardians lineup that no longer features Josh Naylor.