Five Dominicans among starters of traditional ‘Opening Day’
Five Dominicans represent Latin pitchers in the battalion chosen by their teams with the honor of opening opening day of the 2026 MLB season
Led by the left-handed Philadelphia Phillies, Christopher Sanchez, five dominicans represent the latin american pitchers in it battalion of chosen for his teams with the honor of open he first game of the new season of the Major Leagues (MLB) of American baseball.
Sanchez, who just signed a six-year extension with the Phillies after finishing third in the National League Cy Young Award race last season, will face the Texas Rangers and right-hander Nathan Eovaldi on Thursday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
It will be the first Opening Day start for Sánchez in his career, while Eovaldi will be in the first game of the season for the third year in a row, and sixth time in his career.
The other Dominicans designated to start their teams’ first game are right-handers Sandy Alcántara (Miami Marlins), Freddy Peralta (New York Mets), Luis Severino (Athletics) and José Soriano (Los Angeles Angels).
The 2026 MLB season will begin on Wednesday with an interleague game between the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. Left-hander Max Fried will face right-hander Logan Webb on the earliest opening day in history not counting international starts. For Webb it will be his fifth consecutive inaugural start with San Francisco and for Fried the third of his career, but the first with the Bronx Bombers.
Thursday’s massive 11-game opener includes the clash between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Mets at Citi Field, in which Peralta, who was acquired in a trade from the Milwaukee Brewers, will face Paul Skenes, the old circuit’s Cy Young Award winner in 2025. For Peralta it will be his third consecutive opening appearance and for Skenes his second.
Soriano, who led the Angels with 169 innings in 31 outings last season, will make his first Opening Day start against the Houston Astros and Hunter Brown at Daikin Park.
Severino, who will be making his third opening day appearance, will face the Toronto Blue Jays and right-hander Kevin Gausman at Rogers Center on Friday. Severino also started the first game last year, in the first season of his $67 million contract with the Athletics, who are playing in Sacramento, California, until the opening of their new stadium in Las Vegas, scheduled to open in 2028.
That same day, the Colorado Rockies will visit the Marlins at LoanDepot Park and Alcántara will take the mound for his sixth inaugural start in seven years with Miami, the all-time record for the expansion franchise. Kyle Freeland will have his third straight first-day assignment and the fifth of his career, a record in the Colorado organization.
Despite having the longest, most grueling schedule in professional sports leagues and its championship being decided in the fall, starting the inaugural game remains one of the highest honors among pitchers. Except for some cases of stars who are sidelined due to existing injuries or recovery processes, whoever starts the first game is seen as the horse of their team.
Tom Seaver he started 12 consecutive opening games and holds the record with 16 (11 with the Mets, three for the Cincinnati Reds and two for the Chicago White Sox), while Jack Morris (11 with Detroit Tigers, 1 with Minnesota Twins and 2 with Toronto) holds the mark with 14 consecutive “Opening Day” assignments.
The lefty Steve Carlton started 14 of the 15 opening games of the Phillies between 1972 and 1986, losing only that of 1976, when Jim Kaat was the opener. The right Gaylord Perry accomplished a rarity, starting the opening game for five different teams (GiantsCleveland Guardians, RangersSan Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners).
According to a count on the portal of the Cooperstown Hall of Fame, Jimmy Key (7-0), Wes Ferrell (6-0), Lon Warneke and Rip Sewell (5-0) were invincible, but no one was more dominant than the great Walter Johnson in season opening games.
“The Big Train” Johnson went 9-5 with seven shutouts in 14 Opening Day starts in his legendary 21-year career with the Washington Nationals of the American League. Johnson won 417 games and had a 2.17 ERA, 117 shutouts and 3,509 strikeouts in 5,914 major league innings.
