Austin Wells hit a leadoff homer three pitches into the home half of the first inning and Anthony Volpe connected in the second as the Yankees improved to 7-1 in season openers under manager Aaron Boone.
Aaron Judge added an RBI double in the seventh and Cody Bellinger followed that at-bat with a sacrifice fly in his Yankees debut. Those runs proved crucial when New York’s new closer, Devin Williams, struggled in the ninth against his former team.
Starting the third season of a six-year, $162 million deal, Rodon (1-0) allowed one run on four hits in 5 1/3 innings. The left-hander struck out seven and walked two in his second career Opening Day start.
Milwaukee’s Freddy Peralta (0-1) allowed two runs on four hits in five innings during his second career Opening Day start.
Eleswhere, Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman hit home runs, Blake Snell went five strong innings and the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers capped a day of celebration with a 5-4 victory over the visiting Detroit Tigers.
In his Dodgers debut, the free-agent addition Snell (1-0) gave up two runs on five hits over five innings with two strikeouts. The two-time Cy Young Award winner was able to work around four walks. Blake Treinen pitched a scoreless ninth for his first save.
Ohtani hit his second home run in the third game of the season as the Dodgers played at home for the first time since a victory in Game 2 of the 2024 World Series against the New York Yankees.
In Houston, Framber Valdez tossed seven shutout innings and the new-look Astros claimed a 3-1 victory over the visiting New York Mets.
Valdez (1-0) became the first left-hander in franchise history to make four consecutive Opening Day starts.
He scattered four hits, issued two walks and recorded four strikeouts, seemingly strengthening as he worked deeper into his outing. Valdez tossed 90 pitches, 56 for strikes. (Reuters)
