3/29/26

Baseball is back! After months away from the greatest sport (biased) in the world, the crack of the bat and the smell of the fresh cut grass is back in our lives. There are plenty of storylines this season as the Los Angeles Dodgers look for their third World Series title in a row while Toronto and Seattle both enter their 50th seasons as the favorites in the American League. There is also the new ABS challenge system for balls and strikes and the looming potential for a lockout before the 2027 season. No team has played more than four games but let’s take a look at the takeaways from opening weekend.

Opening Day Aces Get Mixed Results

Spring Training is one way for players to get back into game shape and get used to game speed. However, there is another level that players only get in the regular season. Despite having a month of prep, some pitchers got off to shaky starts while some came out and set the tone for great seasons. The most notable pitcher to struggle was Paul Skenes, as he didn’t make it out of the 1st inning of his 2026 debut. Now, Skenes got no help from his defense (more on that later) but the reigning NL Cy Young winner did not have his best command and it really cost him. Logan Webb, Nathan Eovaldi, and Cole Ragans also struggled on Opening Day.

There were plenty of great performances to begin the season however as well. Christopher Sanchez was completely dominant for Philadelphia after signing an extension just weeks ago. Tarik Skubal also got off to a great start as he looks for his third AL Cy Young award in a row. His biggest competition in Garrett Crochet also dominated for Boston in their season opening win. Coveted trade target Joe Ryan also lit it up in his 2026 debut. This just goes to show that some start great and some struggle but one start does not make or break a season for anyone.

5 Teams Open Season with Sweeps

Having a zero in the loss column is always a good thing. After the opening weekend, five teams still have a chance to go 162-0. The longest winning streak to start a season in MLB history is 13 games, last achieved by the 2023 Tampa Bay Rays. The Los Angeles Dodgers are the consensus best team in baseball and started their quest for a three-peat by sweeping Arizona. The defending American League champions in the Toronto Blue Jays also began their season with a sweep of the Athletics. The New York Yankees were the only team to earn a sweep on the road as they got it done in San Francisco. Milwaukee took care of the Chicago White Sox in a series that surprised nobody. The most surprising undefeated team? That would be the Miami Marlins who walked off the Colorado Rockies to earn a sweep and start their season on a high note. Now can any of these teams remain perfect this week?

Rookies Stealing the Show

2026 could feature one of the most exciting Rookie of the Year races in recent memory. 2022 was great in the American League with Julio Rodríguez, Bobby Witt Jr., Adley Rutschman, and Steven Kwan bursting onto the scene. The rookies in 2026 will one up that if this weekend is any indication. Below are the rookie performances from this past weekend.

• Chase DeLauter, Cleveland Guardians, OF- 6-17, 4 HR, 5 RBI, 5 R
• Kevin McGonigle, Detroit Tigers, SS- 5-12, 2 2B, 4 RBI, 2 R
• Sal Stewart, Cincinnati Reds, 3B- 7-10, 3 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R
• Munetaka Murakami, Chicago White Sox, 3B- 3-9, 3 HR, 3 RBI, 4 R, 4 BB
• JJ Wetherholt, St. Louis Cardinals, SS- 4-13, HR, 4 RBI, 2 R, BB,
• Kazuma Okamoto, Toronto Blue Jays, 3B- 4-12, HR, RBI, 3 R, 2 BB

O’Neil Cruz Outfield Experiment

We touched on Paul Skenes rough Opening Day. A big part of that was his center fielder O’Neil Cruz struggling mightily in center field. He struggled reading fly balls and could not seem to get a bead on anything hit his way and was very lackadaisical when he did make plays. Pittsburgh moved him from shortstop to center field because of his defensive struggles. The arm strength is off the charts and you would be hard pressed to find anyone in the league with a stronger arm. But this experiment is failing. Pittsburgh has one of the best pitchers in the sport and has a solid pitching staff as a whole, but defense can derail that quickly. Cruz is starting to look more like a corner infielder rather than a player to be in a premium defensive position.

Early ABS Challenge Results

This season features the debut of the ABS challenge system. This allows batters, catchers, and pitchers to challenge ball and strike calls. Each team can challenge as much as they want until they miss two. At that point they are out of challenges. Teams have seem pretty hesitant early on as everyone gets a feel of how to use their challenges. It does not extend the game much as reviews are quick and does add some drama to the games. Below are the results by position through the opening weekend of the new ABS system.

• Challenges Won/Total Challenges, Percent of Challenges won
• Batters- 33/78, 42.3%
• Catchers- 59/92, 64.1%
• Pitchers- 2/5, 40%
• Total- 94/175, 53.7%

Three Series to Watch Next Week

New York @ Seattle (3/30-4/1, Three Games)

Series this early in the season aren’t ever considered massive. With that being said, the three-game series between the Yankees and Mariners will likely have lasting impacts when we get to September and down the stretch. Head-to-head records matter and with Seattle the favorite to win the AL West and New York an AL East contender, these games could end up deciding who has a first round bye or homefield advantage in the American League. The Yankees dominated the Mariners last season but the games in Seattle were all close. It will be a nice early season test for both teams that get it done different ways and could be a playoff preview.

San Diego @ Boston (4/3-4/5, Three Games)

These two teams feel like they are the same but different. San Diego has an experienced roster that has not quite been able to get over the hump that is the Los Angeles Dodgers. Boston made the postseason last year with their very young roster only to be knocked out by their rivals in the New York Yankees. Now we get to 2026 where both are viewed as Wild Card contenders but maybe not World Series contenders. Neither got off to a good start either as both lost their season opening series so a chance for Boston to right the ship in their home opener could build the confidence early for this young core.

Milwaukee @ Kansas City (4/3-4/5, Three Games)

Milwaukee is a team that constantly gets overlooked but constantly delivers winning season after winning season. Kansas City gave their fans a taste of what could be when they made the playoffs in 2024 but had a bit of a letdown last season. The Royals seemed to make moves to get better while the Brewers made the interesting move to trade ace Freddy Peralta. Both are contenders in the Central divisions but both have some big early season questions to answer, both at the plate and on the mound.

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