Stanton, Yankees crush Blue Jays

TORONTO — Giancarlo Stanton made the expected impression in his New York Yankees debut — and more.

Stanton began his Yankees career with the hardest-hit, opposite-field home run since Major League Baseball began tracking exit velocity in 2015, doubled and hit a second homer into the center-field party deck in the ninth. Stanton’s four RBIs led the Yankees over the Toronto Blue Jays 6-1 Thursday and gave Aaron Boone in a win in his first game as a professional manager.

Luis Severino (1-0) pitched 5 scoreless innings for the Yankees, who won their opener for the first time since 2011.

Stanton took a strike from J.A. Happ (0-1) in the first inning, then hit a 426-foot, two-run drive to right measured at 117.3 mph. Stanton added an RBI double in the fifth and hit a 434-foot home run in the ninth off Tyler Clippard.

CUBS 8, MARLINS 4: Ian Happ homered on the first pitch of the major New York’s Giancarlo Stanton, right, and Gary Sanchez, left, celebrate with teammates after Thursday’s game against Toronto.

league season, and Anthony Rizzo made his emotional homecoming even more memorable with a homer. METS 9, CARDINALS 4: Yoenis Cespedes drove in three runs and newcomer Adrian Gonzalez hit a go-ahead double. ORIOLES 3, TWINS 2 (11 INN.): Adam Jones homered on Fernando Rodney’s first pitch starting the bottom of the 11th inning. WHITE SOX 14, ROYALS 7: Matt Davidson became the fourth player in major league history to homer three times on opening day. BREWERS 2, PADRES 1 (12 INN.): Orlando Arcia

singled in Ji-Man Choi with two outs in the 12th inning. ASTROS 4, RANGERS 1: Justin Verlander struck out five, walked two and hit a batter while throwing 90 pitches for the World Series champions. RAYS 6, RED SOX 4: Denard Span made a huge splash in his debut for his hometown team on opening day, lining a bases-loaded triple to highlight a six-run rally in the eighth inning. STAUB DIES AT 73: Rusty Staub, the orange-haired outfielder who became a hit with baseball fans in two countries during an All-Star career that spanned 23 major

league seasons, died at 73. Staub died after an illness in a hospital in West Palm Beach, Florida, the New York Mets said in a statement. He was a six-time AllStar and the only player in major league history to have at least 500 hits with four teams. HOLLAND, CARDINALS REACH DEAL: Greg Holland and the St. Louis Cardinals agreed to a $14 million, one-year contract, according to a person familiar with the deal. A three-time All-Star, Holland was a free agent after leading the National League with 41 saves last year for Colorado.