MLB Opening Day scores and highlights: Dodgers, Mets, Brewers among winners

Gabe Lacques Jesse Yomtov Jon Hoefling Andrés Soto James H. Williams

USA TODAY

March 26, 2026Updated March 27, 2026, 1:14 a.m. ET

A flag was raised, an indomitable ace and a star-studded lineup collided and 24 more Major League Baseball teams got their 2026 seasons underway as Opening Day – the traditional, plausibly real one – arrived.

From afternoon back East until the wee hours on the West Coast, a slate of intriguing matchups began with reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes taking on the New York Mets - and new $42 million third baseman Bo Bichette - at Citi Fields in Queens.

The action continued through the afternoon with a trio of notable rookies debuting: Tigers infielder Kevin McGonigle at San Diego, Phillies center fielder Justin Crawford at home against Texas and St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt, batting leadoff in the lid-lifter at Busch Stadium against Tampa Bay.

The two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers won a twilight opener out west against Arizona.

USA TODAY Sports provided updates throughout the day:

MLB Opening Day schedule and scores

Chase DeLauter helps Guardians take down Mariners

Chase DeLauter hit a home run 422 feet to center field to increase the Guardians' lead to 6-4 with one out in the top of the ninth inning. It was his second home run in his regular-season major league debut.

Cleveland put Seattle's first three batters down in the bottom of the ninth to secure the victory.

Guardians retake lead against Mariners in seventh

Brayan Rocchio singled to centerfield before Chase DeLauter hit a single of his own to put runners on first and second base for the Guardians.

Jose Ramirez doubled to left field, bringing in DeLauter and Rocchio to score.

Dominic Canzone hit a home run 444 feet to center field for the Mariners to help cut into the Guardians' lead in the bottom of the inning.

Cleveland leads Seattle 5-4 in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Mariners and Guardians even in fifth

Luke Raley hit a home run 344 feet to right field for the Mariners to even the score with the Guardians at 3 in the bottom of the fifth.

Defending champion Dodgers open with victory

Andy Pages and Will Smith each hit home runs, and starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto collected his first win of the season as the reigning World Series champion Dodgers defeated the Diamondbacks, 8-2, at Dodger Stadium.

LA newcomer Kyle Tucker collected his first hit with the Dodgers as every player in the starting lineup other than Freddie Freeman got at least one hit.

Kyle Tucker scores Shohei Ohtani on first hit as a Dodger

Kyle Tucker's still working on his on-base celebration.

Tucker's first hit in Dodger blue was a big one as he lined a double into the gap in right field to score Shohei Ohtani, who had reached base on a hit by pitch, to give the Dodgers some more breathing room.

That led to yet another offensive avalanche by the Dodgers, as Tucker immediately scored on an RBI base hit by Mookie Betts. Freddie Freeman nearly went deep in his at-bat, but it felt just short and DBacks left fielder Jordan Lawlar scaled the wall to get the first out of the side.

Will Smith's drive, however, did clear the fence for a two-run bomb to open up a commanding 8-2 lead for LA in the bottom of the seventh.

– Andrés Soto, USA TODAY

Dodgers chase Zac Gallen from game with big fifth inning, powered by Andy Pages three-run homer

Diamondbacks starter Zac Gallen had been shoving on Opening Day, silencing the Dodgers bats to just one hit through the first four innings. But things started to shift in the fifth when Max Muncy pulled a long ball just foul to right field. On the very next pitch, Muncy broke through for a leadoff single and Teoscar Hernández followed suit.

Then, Andy Pages, coming off a strong showing in spring training, mashed a knuckle curve at the knees from Gallen and sent it 400 feet to left center field to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Things continued to spiral from there for Gallen as Miguel Rojas worked a six-pitch at-bat that ended with a single up the middle. Shohei Ohtani then walked on seven pitches before Gallen was pulled from the game with two runners on and no outs.

The Dodgers added another run on an RBI single from Will Smith with the bases loaded.

Gallen's final line on Opening Day: 4.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K on 76 pitches (47 strikes)

– Andrés Soto, USA TODAY

Geraldo Perdomo goes yard at Dodger Stadium

Geraldo Perdomo established himself as a rising star for the Arizona Diamondbacks last season, and he's starting off 2026 on a strong note. Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto left a fastball up in the zone and Perdomo jumped all over it, driving the ball 398 feet into the right field pavilion seats to give the DBacks a 2-0 lead. – Andrés Soto, USA TODAY

José Soriano shines on mound, Mike Trout goes deep in Angels Opening Day win vs Astros

Los Angeles Angels starter José Soriano impressed in his 2026 debut, throwing six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and allowing just two hits on 91 pitches to take the win in his first career Opening Day start as the Halos beat AL West rival Houston Astros 3-0 at Daikin Park.

Soriano kept the Astros lineup off balance with a healthy mix of his five-pitch repertoire; he punched out two batters each on his sinker, knuckle curve and splitter and one on his fastball, which topped out at 101.3 mph.

The game was a 0-0 pitchers' duel throughout Soriano's outing, with Houston's ace Hunter Brown able to keep the Halos' bats quiet through his 4.2 innings pitched. It was Mike Trout who would spark the offense in the seventh inning, when he took a fastball from Astros reliever AJ Blubaugh 403 feet to left field over the crawford boxes for his fifth career Opening Day home run, extending his franchise record.

Trout's contributions didn't stop there as he drew three walks on the day and stole his first base since April 15 of last season.

– Andrés Soto, USA TODAY

New-look Mets notch Opening Day win vs Pirates

NEW YORK —The Mets fans made sure their fans were smiling throughout the Opening Day festivities on Thursday afternoon.

After falling behind quickly by two runs in the top of the first inning, they responded by forcing Paul Skenes to make a quick exit after only two outs.

The Mets poured on five runs in the opening frame to push Skenes aside and then kept rolling in an 11-7 win over the Pirates in front of a sold-out crowd of 41,449 fans in Flushing.

– Andrew Tredinnick, NorthJersey.com

Kevin McGonigle gets first MLB hit

Kevin McGonigle showed what all the hype is about.

Baseball's consensus No. 2 prospect turned on the first pitch he saw in the big leagues and ripped a bases-loaded, two-run double off San Diego Padres right-hander Nick Pivetta, the big blow in a five-run first inning for Detroit at Petco Park in San Diego.

– Gabe Lacques

Carson Benge stays hot for Mets

Mets' outfielder Carson Benge was a fringe roster option heading into spring but wound up with the starting right field job thanks to a tremendous preseason stretch including a home run during an international exhibition against Israel ahead of the World Baseball Classic.

Well, he's keeping that hot streak alive, earning his first Major League hit, a home run to put the Mets up 10-5.

Benge's home run was backed up with another solo shot from catcher Francisco Alvarez. Mets lead 11-5 in the bottom of the sixth.

CJ Abrams, Jacob Young break it open for Washington

The Chicago Cubs are struggling to get out of the fourth inning. After entering with a 2-1 lead, it's now 7-2 Washington thanks in part to a two-run single from CJ Abrams. Abrams nearly had a double, but was thrown out at second. Even after review, the play was upheld.

The single gave Washington their first lead since Joey Wiemer's home run in the second to put them up 1-0.

Washington continued the onslaught that inning, with Jacob Young capping off the six-run inning with a two-run homer, driving in Keibert Ruiz.

William Contreras double puts Milwaukee in front

Last year's No. 1 seed in the National League, the Milwaukee Brewers, got off to a rough start on Opening Day against the Chicago White Sox, allowing a leadoff home run to Chase Meidroth. However, their fortunes were reversed rather quickly thanks to a bases-clearing double from catcher William Contreras.

The double was part of a four-run second inning for Milwaukee. They lead 4-1.

White Sox leadoff homer

It's been a long few seasons for Chi Sox fans, but they received a great omen to kick off the 2026 season with second baseman Chase Meidroth leading off the top of the first inning with a solo shot.

The White Sox lead 1-0 as we approach the bottom of the first.

Brandon Lowe hits another!

Rays fans will tell you that all Brandon Lowe did was hit homers and strike out. Well, in two at-bats with Pittsburgh, he's only done the former. The two-time All-Star has hit 30 homers twice in his career and already has two in his career with the Pirates after going deep off Freddy Peralta in the third inning.

Unlike his first, this was a solo shot, but was almost another two-run dinger after Oneil Cruz was initially walked but was called out on strikes after a successful ABS challenge from Peralta.

Lowe's home run has pulled the Pirates back within two innings. It's 5-3 Mets heading to the bottom of the third.

Skenes pulled in first inning

If Pirates fans thought that two runs would be enough to carry them to victory behind reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes, they were dead wrong.

After 37 pitches and two-thirds of an inning, Skenes has been pulled. The final straw was when Skenes plunked Francisco Alvarez, putting runners on first and second.

Prior to today, the shortest outing of Skenes' career was 3.2 innings. That has been blown out of the water. A three-run triple by Brett Baty followed by an RBI double from Marcus Semien were the two big hits of the inning.

Skenes was replaced by Yohan Ramirez, whose first pitch got away from catcher Henry Davis, allowing Semien and Alvarez to advance to second and third.

Brandon Lowe home runs opens 2026 season

Making his Pirates debut, Brandon Lowe hit a two-run homer off new Mets Freddy Peralta in the top of the first inning, giving Paul Skenes an instant 2-0 lead.

An All-Star in 2025 with the Rays, Lowe was acquired by Pittsburgh in a December trade. The former Maryland Terrapin hit 31 home runs for Tampa Bay last season.

Jackson Chourio injury update

Jackson Chourio's World Baseball Classic appearance has come with a cost.

The Milwaukee Brewers placed the outfielder on the 10-day injured list Thusday, March 26 with a fractured left hand. Chourio suffered a hairline fracture at the base of his third metacarpal, according to the team.

Chourio was hit by a pitch in a March 4 game while playing for eventual WBC champion Team Venezuela. He finished out the tournament and then returned to the Brewers but felt pain in the hand on a check swing while playing in an exhibition game against the Cincinnati Reds at American Family Field on Tuesday, March 24.

"He got hit in the WBC and was dealing with a little bit of pain there, and then it showed up on a check swing the other day and [the pain] was pretty meaningful," president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said Thursday. "So, we got another image on it, and it looks like it's fractured very slightly.

– Todd Rosiak, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Tigers face huge 2026 expectations

SAN DIEGO – On the first day of spring training, Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch framed the long journey ahead for his coaches and players in a team meeting.

"We're back at the bottom of the mountain again, with clear goals."

More than five weeks later, Hinch closed spring training with a declaration as a new season gets underway.

"We're trying to win the World Series."

It has been more than a decade since the Tigers last won the American League Central, but this team isn't searching for an identity – not after back-to-back postseason exits in Game 5 of the ALDS.

"I'm ready to play baseball for the Detroit Tigers and try to win a World Series," said Tarik Skubal, the reigning two-time AL Cy Young winner and now three-time Opening Day starter lined up for a $400 million payday when he hits free agency after this season.

– Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press

Featured Weekly Ad