Blue Jays top Yankees in 10
Julian Merryweather had to get used to fans in the stands, having debuted last summer in an empty ballpark.
No matter. The Toronto Blue Jays turned Yankee Stadium as silent as it was during a 2020 season played without fans.
Randal Grichuk led off the 10th with an RBI double, Merryweather struck out the side on 11 pitches in the bottom half, and the Blue Jays took advantage of the second year of COVIDera rule starting starting extra innings with a runner on to beat New York 3-2 Thursday in the major league opener.
Tigers 3, Indians 2 —
Miguel Cabrera homered through the snow in his first at-bat of the season to lift the Detroit Tigers to a victory over Cleveland.
Matthew Boyd (1-0) beat reigning Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber, and the Tigers welcomed their fans back to Comerica Park with a victory.
Royals 14, Rangers 10 —
Texas scored five times in the top of the first, but Kansas City responded with five runs of their own in the bottom of the inning and went on to beat the Rangers in a slugfest.
Batting second, Andrew Benintendi was 1-5 with a walk and a run scored in his Royals debut.
National League
Pirates 5, Cubs 3 —Ke’Bryan Hayes hit a two-run homer and Pittsburgh’s relievers dominated in a two-hitter, helping the Pirates beat the Cubs.
Braves 3, Phillies 2 — Jean Segura hit an RBI single with two outs in the 10th inning to lift the Phillies over Atlanta.
After Nate Jones (0-1) intentionally walked Did Gregorius, Segura hit a bouncer down the thirdbase line to score Bryce Harper.
Padres 8, Diamondbacks 7 — Eric Hosmer had a homer among his three hits and drove in three runs, newcomer Victor Caratini also had three RBIs and the San Diego Padres gave up four long balls in the fifth inning to blow a five-run lead before beating the Arizona Diamondbacks to open one of the most anticipated seasons in franchise history.
Cardinals 11, Reds 6 — Paul Goldschmidt and newcomer Nolan Arenado combined for six hits in a boosted St. Louis lineup, and the Cardinals roughed up Luis Castillo for six runs in the first inning to beat the Cincinnati Reds.
Rockies 8, Dodgers 5 —On an afternoon Cody Bellinger had a homer negated due to a baserunning mistake, the Colorado Rockies played plenty of small ball to beat the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Rockies scored runs courtesy of a squeeze play, two wild pitches, a groundout, an error and three RBI singles.
Interleague
Rays 1, Marlins 0 — Austin Meadows’ home run with two outs in the eighth inning was all the Tampa Bay Rays needed, and the reigning AL champions started their season with a win over Miami.
Brewers 6, Twins 5 — Lorenzo Cain scored the winning run in the 10th after Travis Shaw sparked a ninth-inning comeback and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Minnesota Twins.