Tag: Opening Day

49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky punts ball out of Giants’ Oracle Park in San Francisco

The Giants celebrated the home opener in San Francisco with the help of Mitch Wishnowsky and other members of the 49ers.

After seven games on the road, the San Francisco Giants finally returned to the Bay Area for their first game of the season at Oracle Park. To help celebrate the home opener Friday, the Giants welcomed a few members of the San Franciso 49ers to Willie Mays Plaza.

Wide receiver Deebo Samuel and linebacker Fred Warner stepped to the mound for traditional first pitches before the Giants hosted the San Diego Padres. However, the Giants had something special in mind for 49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky.

Wishnowsky marked the Giants home opener with a ceremonial “first punt.” The 49ers punter launched a football from right field into the water of McCovey Cove.

Via @NBCSGiants on Twitter:

First pitches and punts from the 49ers helped serve the Giants luck on Friday as they registered a walk-off 3-2 win over the Padres.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! 

Houston Astros colors blanket merchandise tent at 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open

What a week to be a resident of Houston.

What a week to be a resident of Houston.

Not only is the PGA Tour’s 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open in town, the Astros have their Opening Day game Thursday afternoon against the New York Yankees, and the Houston Cougars men’s basketball team is in the Sweet 16 of March Madness.

Sports are awesome, aren’t they?

But the Houston Astros have their fingerprints all over the Houston Open at Memorial Park Golf Course, a municipal facility about 5 miles west of downtown. The Astros Golf Foundation runs the tournament, and the logo has the same colors as do the Major League Baseball team.

The merchandise tent also has a heavy Astros flair, with orange, blue and white shirts, hats, pullovers and plenty more.

Here’s a look at the best merchandise at the Texas Children’s Houston Open:

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Grading preseason All-American Jonathan Santucci’s 2024 debut on Opening Day

The Blue Devils presumed ace and preseason All-American threw five scoreless innings against Indiana on Friday, here’s our breakdown on his day.

Few athletes at Duke have the preseason expectations of southpaw Jonathan Santucci, a junior named to Baseball America’s preseason All-American Second Team.

The lefty has sported an ERA of 4.17 and 4.30, respectively, across his two seasons in Durham thus far. He struck out 108 batters across his 70.1 innings of collegiate baseball, and he earned a record of 4-5 across 14 starts and 27 appearances.

His first five innings of 2024 may not have been perfect, but they did more than their share of living up to the hype. He held Indiana scoreless, earning the individual win for his efforts as the Blue Devils opened the season with a 6-3 win over the Hoosiers.

Here’s a breakdown of the ins and outs of Santucci’s opening performance.

Chiefs were well-represented at Royals opening day

#Chiefs HC Andy Reid, GM Brett Veach and Hall of Fame LB Bobby Bell took in #Royals’ opening day at The K on Thursday.

Some key figures at 1 Arrowhead Drive took a trip across the parking lot on Thursday to support the Kansas City Royals on opening day.

In what has become an annual tradition, the Kansas City Chiefs sent over a contingent to take in the game on opening day as the Royals faced the Minnesota Twins at Kauffman Stadium. The two historic franchises have long supported each other, so it’s no surprise to see the Chiefs out there having the Royals’ back as they get their season underway. This year HC Andy Reid and GM Brett Veach were joined by Hall of Fame linebacker Bobby Bell.

The trio all snapped a photo together. Reid and Veach also took another photo with Royals majority owner John Sherman and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas. The team shared the images on their social media channel.

Check it out:

Patrick Mahomes, a part-owner of the Royals, wasn’t in attendance for this year’s opening day. That’s the second year in a row that he has missed opening day. His recent social media posts have suggested that he’s off training with Bobby Stroupe in Texas for the offseason. He did, however, drop a new colorway of his Adidas Mahomes 1’s that seems to be heavily inspired by the Royals.

Zack Greinke, the former No. 6 overall pick in the 2002 MLB draft, got the start for the Royals on Thursday. Despite a solid performance from Greinke, a lack of run support led to a 2-0 loss to the Twins on opening day. Perhaps they’ll have better luck on Saturday when the series resumes.

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5 players you need to add in fantasy leagues after MLB’s opening weekend

Steven Kwan and Hunter Greene should be your top priorities on the waiver wires

Not much can be learned after just four games.

That much is pretty true across most sports, but especially in baseball, where it accounts for barely 2.4% of team’s 162-game season. That doesn’t mean we can’t overreact to some of what we saw across Major League Baseball’s opening weekend.

And for fantasy players who are still in the midst of their first matchup, early season acquisitions can be absolutely crucial. You don’t want to miss out on the type of production Yermin Mercedes had last April or what Logan Webb was able to sustain all year.

One series might not tell us everything we need to know, but it’s enough to convince us to add a few players off waivers immediately. Here’s who you should grab as fast as you can.

The Braves’ epic World Series rings even found a way to honor Joc Pederson’s pearl necklace

The Braves went wild with these World Series rings.

In case you thought the Atlanta Braves championship celebration was over, the fine folks in Georgia would like to remind you that is far from the case.

On Opening Day, the Braves debuted a new special edition jersey with gold trim around each letter and number to signify their World Series win last year.

Saturday saw an even more epic celebration as the Braves handed out their title rings. They are, in a word, spectacular. In more words, they are a true work of art that celebrates all of Atlanta’s baseball history from Hank Aaron to the new-ish Truist Park.

Let this Braves video walk you through all the ways Atlanta outdid itself:

Ok, the diamonds are nice. The gold is to be expected.

The LED lights inside the ring? That’s new! The single pearl on the side honoring Joc Pederson’s famous postseason chain? Absolutely exquisite. And don’t sleep on the rubies denoting each of Atlanta’s 11 postseason home runs inside a mini stadium under the ring cap.

This ring is part art gallery, part history book and 100 percent worthy of a champion.

Nice job, Atlanta. You’ve raised the bar impossibly high.

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The Red Sox are wearing Toy Story and X-Men cleats today and the Yankees must be shook

Boston will be mashing baseballs to infinity and beyond

Let’s take a quick vibe check on Major League Baseball’s two biggest rivals before they face off on Opening Day Part II.

The Yankees pulled up to The Bronx on Friday only to find out Aaron Judge will not be signing an extension in New York before the season. Meanwhile, general manager Brian Cashman did his best “well, we tried!” schtick to the media, hoping it’ll make the team’s fans forget the franchise they root for has all the money in the world and then some.

The Red Sox, on the other hand, arrive ready to show off their individualism and outgoingness against a team that the Yanks have all but forbidden its players from doing so.

How do we know this? Just take a glance down at the cleats Boston’s players are wearing today.

Shortstop Xander Bogaerts pulled out all the stops on these custom “X-Man” shoes, complete with his likeness as Wolverine.

The only problem is they might not even be the best kicks on the roster today. Not with catcher Christian Vasquez breaking out Toy Story themed Buzz and Woody cleats.

I mean, goodness. Boston might as well be starting off with a 2-0 lead on Friday. Tipico Sportsbook has Bogaerts total bases over 1.5 at +140 (bet $100 to win $140) and with the way he’s looking, that should be a lock.

With Clint Frazier no longer wearing pinstripes to class up New York’s shoe game, the Yankees don’t really stand a chance to win this battle. The best they can hope for is a victory on the field—if you’re into that sort of thing.

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LOOK: Chiefs brass taking in Royals opening day

A few notable members of the #Chiefs organization were at Kauffman Stadium to take in some #Royals baseball on opening day.

Opening day for Major League Baseball is here in April this year after labor negotiations caused a late start to the 2022 season.

At least for the time being, just across the way from the Kansas City Chiefs in the Truman Sports Complex, the Kansas City Royals play at Kauffman Stadium. The two teams have long supported each other in their endeavors and that’s not changing this MLB season. In what has become somewhat of a tradition, the Chiefs sent over a contingent to take in the game on opening day as the Royals face the Cleveland Guardians at The K.

This year it was Chiefs HC Andy Reid, GM Brett Veach and president Mark Donovan taking in the game alongside Royals majority owner John Sherman and Senior VP Adam Sachs. The team’s Twitter page shared a picture of everyone posing together in a suite:

Patrick Mahomes, a part-owner of the Royals, wasn’t in attendance for this year’s opening day as he was last year. He remains in Tyler, Texas working with his trainer Bobby Stroupe and his teammates getting some serious offseason training in. He did acknowledge opening day earlier on Thursday, though.

Today was a particularly special day for the Royals, who welcomed back pitcher Zack Greinke, the former No. 6 overall pick in the 2002 MLB draft. Greinke was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2010, in a trade that would help set up the Royals’ 2015 World Series win. There’s also Bobby Witt Jr., the MLB’s No. 1 overall prospect, who is making his big league debut. Perhaps the infusion of Greinke’s wisdom and Witt’s youth will be enough to get the Royals back to the World Series again.

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Albert Pujols received an incredible Opening Day standing ovation in his first game back with the Cardinals

An emotional moment for Sir Albert.

When Albert Pujols first left St. Louis for the Angels over a decade ago, his place in Cardinals lore was etched in stone.

Few all-time greats — let alone any Cardinals superstars — could compare to nine All-Star selections and three MVPs. To manage such individual excellence while taking center stage as the talisman for two World Series teams in 2006 and 2011 made his accomplishments even better.

Pujols made a lot of wonderful, joyous memories in Cardinals’ red.

That’s what made his official return to St. Louis on Opening Day — as a Cardinal, not an opposing player — all the sweeter. After everything he did for the franchise, the fans inside Busch Stadium made sure to let Pujols know they still have nothing but love for him with a special gift:

A standing ovation as he came up to bat for the first time this season:

I can figuratively see the goosebumps form on my arm while rewatching that clip. Now imagine how Pujols felt, knowing that this would be his last Opening Day ever.

A legend gets his due in return to his old stomping grounds. How could you not be romantic about baseball?

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Cubs Nico Hoerner’s glorious Opening Day dinger is the first home run of the 2022 MLB season

BASEBALL IS BACK!

It feels so good to have baseball back!

Thursday officially marked Opening Day and the start of the 2022 MLB season, coming less than a month after the league ended its 99-day lockout. In the first game of the day — Milwaukee Brewers at Chicago Cubs — fans were treated to a glorious first home run of the season thanks to Nico Hoerner.

With the score tied 1-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning with one man on base, Hoerner smashed a bullet out to left field for a two-run home run, putting the Cubs up 3-1 in a flash. Seriously, look at that ball soar!

Listen to it. The pop of the bat. The roar of the crowd. How can you not love this? And Cubs fans were absolutely loving it too.

Here’s to many, many more sublime dingers in the dog days of summer to come!

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