Good start: Opening Day’s top performers

It’s at all times good to start out the season off on the proper foot, and a few gamers have carried out at a very excessive degree on Opening Day over the course of their careers. There are nice particular person, single-season performances, however sustaining that type of success over a profession is totally different.

Here’s a take a look at the profession leaders in quite a lot of Opening Day statistical classes, with some assist from the Elias Sports Bureau, with every stat going again to the beginning of the Modern Era (1900), until in any other case famous. The energetic chief in every class is listed as nicely.

Starts: Tom Seaver (16)
Seaver was as spectacular on Opening Day as he was prolific, permitting two or fewer runs in eight of these begins and going seven-plus innings in eight as nicely. He had a 2.13 ERA in his team-record 11 Opening Day begins for the Mets. Jack Morris, Walter Johnson, Randy Johnson and Steve Carlton are tied for second with 14 every.
Active chief getting into 2022: Justin Verlander (12)

Strikeouts: Randy Johnson (107)
Johnson racked up all these Ok’s over the course of 14 Opening Day begins in his profession. That’s 26 greater than every other pitcher. Seaver is second with 81.

Johnson had 4 10-strikeout video games on Opening Day, essentially the most all-time. Bob Gibson, Pedro Martínez, Félix Hernández and Max Scherzer are tied for second with three every.
Active chief: Verlander (76)

Wins: Walter Johnson (9)
Johnson is third in Opening Day strikeouts (79) and tied for second in begins, so it shouldn’t be a shock to see him atop one other listing. The Big Train completed with yet another season-opening victory than Pete Alexander and Morris. His whole included wins on 5 straight Opening Days from 1913-17, a stretch that included 5 full video games, three shutouts and a complete of three runs allowed.
Active leaders: Clayton Kershaw & Justin Verlander (5)

ERA: Bob Feller (1.21)
Feller’s 1.21 ERA is the bottom amongst pitchers with greater than 5 Opening Day begins since earned runs grew to become official in each leagues in 1913. He made seven Opening Day begins for Cleveland in 1939-41 and ’46-’49, permitting a couple of earned run simply as soon as, in 1941 — when he allowed 4 to the White Sox.
Active chief (greater than 5 GS): Clayton Kershaw (1.73)

Games performed: Pete Rose (23)
Rose’s Opening Day video games spanned from 1963-85, a 23-season streak which started towards the Pirates and concluded towards the Expos — a staff that didn’t even exist when he performed his first opener. Albert Pujols, Carl Yastrzemski and Hank Aaron are tied for second with 22 every. But neither of them, nor Rose, performed in essentially the most wins. That distinction belongs to Babe Ruth and Brooks Robinson, with 15 every.
Active chief: Albert Pujols (22)

Home Runs: Adam Dunn, Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Robinson (eight)
This trio shares the document, however they every bought there in numerous methods. Robinson hit precisely one dwelling run in eight totally different Opening Day video games. Griffey had a two-homer sport in 1997, then hit one in six different video games. And Dunn had two totally different Opening Day video games with two homers, in 2005 and ’07, and one every in 4 different video games.

Dunn is one in every of seven gamers on document (since 1901) with two multihomer video games on Opening Day, together with Joe Torre, Xavier Nady, Raul Mondesi, Eddie Mathews, Juan González and Pujols.
Active leaders: Albert Pujols, Bryce Harper, Evan Longoria, Giancarlo Stanton (5)

Batting Average: Gabby Hartnett, Adrián González, Jeff Kent (.467)
Hartnett and González had equivalent 21-for-45 showings on Opening Day, whereas Kent went 28-for-60. That tied all three for the very best common in season openers, with a minimal of fifty profession plate appearances. Hartnett set the usual, together with his Opening Day appearances coming between 1922-41, then Kent matched it from 1993-2008 and González from 2006-18. Each slugged mightily on Opening Day as nicely, with slugging percentages all above .730.
Active chief (min 30 PA): Michael Brantley (.378)

Hits: Pete Rose (31)
Rose recorded no less than one hit in 17 totally different Opening Day video games and had a number of hits in 11 of these, placing him three forward of Joe Judge, Kent and Yastrzemski on the general listing.
Active chief: Robinson Cano (21)

RBIs: Adam Dunn (21)
Dunn had 5 RBIs on Opening Day in 2005, and 4 in every of ‘09 and ‘11. The remainder of the highest 4 contains Guerrero (19), Robinson (18) and Kent (18), earlier than a big tie for fifth.
Active chief: Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera (16)