Grand openings
A look back at some memorable Opening Day accomplishments
While nothing that’s happened on a Major League Baseball Opening Day has more historic significance than Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier on the first day of the 1947 season, there have been countless on-field performances of note in season openers.
As we get set to open the 2024 season, here’s a VFTB look at some statistically significant feats accomplished over the years on Opening Day.
NO HITS, NO RUNS, NO PROBLEM
At the age of 21, Cleveland’s Bob Feller thew MLB’s only Opening Day no-hitter in 1940, a rousing start to a season in which he’d win the AL pitching Triple Crown, leading the league with 27 wins, a 2.61 ERA and 261 strikeouts. He fired 31 complete games in 37 starts and a worked a total of 320 1/3 innings pitched that season. Feller walked 5 and struck out 8 in his Opening Day no-no, a 1-0 win over the White Sox in Chicago that was decided on a Rollie Hemsley RBI triple in the 4th inning.
ON PACE FOR 486
4 players have hit 3 home runs in a game on Opening Day: George Bell of the Blue Jays in 1988, Karl “Tuffy” Rhodes of the Cubs in 1994, Dmitri Young of the Tigers in 2005 and Matt Davidson of the White Sox in 2018.
While Bell was the 1987 AL MVP, a 3-time Silver Slugger and a 3-time All-Star over 12 ML seasons and Young slammed 171 long balls over 13 big league seasons, Davidson hit a total of only 54 homers over 6 years in the majors, while Rhodes managed a total of only 13 in 6 years. Rhodes did, however, total 464 home runs over a 13-year career in Japan. He enjoyed 7 seasons with 40-plus home runs in the NPB, including a 55-homer season for the Kintetsu Buffaloes in 2001, which—at the time—equaled Sadaharu Oh’s 1964 total for most in Japanese history.
On Opening Day ‘94, Rhodes hit all 3 of his home runs off the Mets’ Dwight Gooden. Gooden never allowed more than 3 homers in a big league game and, in fact, allowed as many as 3 on only 7 other occasions. Rhodes is the only player to hit 3 in a single game off the Cy Young Award winner and 4-time All-Star.
A STORYBOOK BEGINNING
Playing for the Rockies, Trevor Story became the first and only player in history to hit 2 home runs on Opening Day in his ML debut in 2016. He went deep in his 2nd and 3rd at-bats off of Zack Greinke.
AND, JUST LIKE THAT, IT’S 1-0
2 players have led off Opening Day games with first-pitch home runs in the top of the first: Dwight Evans of the Red Sox off future Hall of Famer Jack Morris in 1986 and Ian Happ of the Cubs off Miami’s Jose Ureña on Opening Day 2018.
Evans hit 4 career Opening Day homers. The ML record is 8, sharded by Hall of Famers Frank Robinson and Ken Griffey Jr. along with Adam Dunn. Willie Mays and Eddie Mathews both blasted 7 homers on Opening Day on their way to Cooperstown.
Evans’ first-pitch shot in ‘86 one-upped Bump Wills of the Cubs, who had homered on the 2nd pitch of the season in 1982.
NOT WASTING ANY TIME
After spending the entire winter of 1973-74 one home run behind Babe Ruth for most in ML history, Henry Aaron tied Ruth with #714 in his first at-bat on Opening Day 1974, a first-inning 3-run shot off the Reds’ Jack Billingham. Aaron would connect for the record-breaking #715 4 days later at home off Al Downing of the Dodgers.
LUCKY 7
2 players have enjoyed 7-RBI explosions on Opening Day: Brant Alyea of the Twins in 1970 and Corey Patterson of the Cubs in 2003.
THE HITS JUST KEEP ON COMING
Toronto’s George Springer and Adley Rutschman of the Orioles last year joined only 12 others all-time to collect 5 hits on Opening Day. The list is highlighted by Babe Ruth in 1921 and Craig Biggio in 2001.
GOOD THINGS COME IN 3’S
Jimmy Sheckard is the only player to hit 3 triples in a season opener. He did it for the 1901 Brooklyn Superbas en route to leading the National League with 19 3-base hits that year.
ONE FOR THE THUMB?
On the other side of the Opening Day spectrum of success: 2 players have gone 0-for-5 with 5 strikeouts on day one of a season: Ron Karkovice of the White Sox in 1996 and Max Muncy of the Dodgers in 2023.
3 of Karkovice’s K’s came against Randy Johnson of the Mariners, who fanned 14 over 7 innings that day. Those 14 punchouts are one shy of the most any pitcher has ever recorded in a season opener. Pitching for the Washington Senators, Camilo Pascual struck out 15 Red Sox in a complete-game 10-1 victory on Opening Day 1960. Pascual struck out every Red Sox starter at least once in that game, except for Ted Williams, who homered in the 2nd for the only Sox run of the day.
CYCLICAL IN NATURE
Tigers right fielder Gee Walker recorded the only Opening Day cycle in major league history in a 4-3 win over the Indians at Detroit’s Navin Field on the first day of the 1937 season. Hitting in a lineup that included 3 Hall of Famers directly in front of him (Mickey Cochrane, Charlie Gehringer and Hank Greenberg) and one directly behind him (Goose Goslin), Walker produced his cycle in only 4 plate appearances, and he did it in reverse order with a solo home run in the 2nd, a triple in the 4th, a double in the 5th and a single in the 7th.
Playing for the Orioles against the Brewers on Opening Day 1973, Don Baylor didn’t hit for the cycle, but he also didn’t technically come up short. Baylor had 4 hits in the game: a double, a triple, a home run and…another double as the O’s cruised to a 10-0 season-opening victory.
SWEET 16
No pitcher has made more Opening Day starts than Hall of Famer Tom Seaver’s 16, 11 with the Mets, 3 with the Reds and 2 with the White Sox.
Walter Johnson, Steve Carlton, Jack Morris and Randy Johnson all got the ball in the season opening game 14 times, while Robin Roberts and Roger Clemens made 13 Opening Day starts each.
The active leaders are Justin Verlander with 12 and Clayton Kershaw with 9, although neither will add to their total this season as both begin 2024 on the IL.
RUNNING WILD
Only 9 players have stolen 3 bases in a game on Opening Day, most recently Trea Turner with the Nationals in 2019. The Marlins’ Emilio Bonifacio swiped 3 bags in a memorable team debut in 2009. In a 12-6 win over the Nationals, Boni went 4-for-5 with an inside-the-park home run, 2 RBI, 4 runs scored and the 3 steals.
GOING LONG
In 1926, 38-year-old Walter Johnson pitched 15 shutout innings for a 1-0 Opening Day win for the Washington Senators against the Philadelphia Athletics. He allowed only 6 hits, walked 3 and struck out 9, holding Hall of Famers Al Simmons and Mickey Cochrane to one hit in 15 at-bats. Joe Harris singled home Bucky Harris with the winning run with one out in the bottom of the 15th, the only run allowed by Athletics starter Eddie Rommel, who also went all the way in the game.
PRESS ON
Years before he’d serve as Marlins hitting coach, Jim Presley had an Opening Day to remember for the Mariners in 1986. Trailing the Angels, 4-2, Presley hit a game-tying 2-run homer in the bottom of the 9th off Donnie Moore. Then, with 2 outs in the 10th, Presley hit a walk-off grand slam off of Ken Forsch, giving Seattle an 8-4 victory.
AN UNFORGETTABLE MO-MENT
While there’ve been several walk-off grand slams on Opening Day, few have been more dramatic than Mo Vaughn’s at Fenway Park in 1998. It capped a 7-run 9th inning in a 9-7 Red Sox season-opening win over the Mariners.
DOUBLE TROUBLE
He’s headed to the Hall of Fame, but Albert Pujols hit into more double plays than any player in ML history, so maybe it’s fitting he’s the only player to ever bounce into 3 twin killings in a season opener. He did it en route to an 0-for-5 day for the Cardinals on Opening Day 2011 in an 11-inning 5-3 loss to the Padres.
ONE TO FORGET
Philadelphia Athletics righthander Carl Schelb became the only starting pitcher ever to allow as many as 4 runs without recording an out on Opening Day in an 8-7 loss to the Washington Senators in 1950.
Gil Coan led off with a single to center field and took 3rd on a Sam Dente double. Irv Noren singled, putting the Senators up, 1-0, and advancing Dente to 3rd. Schelb then walked Eddie Robinson, to load the bases. He was yanked from the game in favor of Bobby Schantz, who allowed a 2-run single to Bud Steward and an RBI single to Eddie Yost before finally recording the first out of the game. The Senators scored 5 in the first before hanging on in the end for an 8-7 victory.
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Great Article Glenn!