NEW YORK -- Looking to add thump to their lineup, the Pirates acquired Brandon Lowe in a three-team trade this past offseason, and he immediately paid dividends on Opening Day against the Mets by hitting two homers in an 11-7 loss at Citi Field on Thursday afternoon.
Lowe wasted no time in making an impact with his new club -- and immediately gave everyone a look at Pittsburgh’s very distinctive home run celebration.
Lowe unleashed on the first pitch he saw while wearing the black and gold and sent a slider from Mets starter Freddy Peralta just beyond the right-field fence for a two-run homer two batters into the game.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Lowe became the fourth player (second starter) in franchise history to homer in his first plate appearance with the team on Opening Day, joining Edward Olivares (March 28, 2024, at Miami, seventh inning, pinch-hitter), Reggie Sanders (March 31, 2003, at Cincinnati, second inning, starting right fielder) and John Vander Wal (April 4, 2000, vs. Houston, seventh inning, pinch-hitter).
It was also the first home run of the 2026 MLB season, and it provided Lowe with an opportunity to showcase the Pirates’ home run celebration. As he made his way to the dugout, Lowe donned a welder’s mask before receiving high-fives from his teammates. That is a celly fit for The Steel City.
“With a new team, you want to make a good impression. It’s nice to get the ball rolling pretty early,” Lowe said. “I was very surprised how little I could see [after I put on the helmet] and how people hit me in the head.
“I could not run through the little area down the end [of the dugout] so I could get that thing off. I could hardly see. Hopefully, everything is cool and people enjoy it. It takes us back to the city and ties into them. Hopefully, they feel some pride in it as well.”
Lowe, by the way, added a second homer in the third inning against Peralta -- though it wasn't the second homer of the young MLB season. Chase Meidroth of the White Sox beat him to it with a big fly off Brewers starter Jacob Misiorowski.
Lowe became the seventh player in Pirates history to homer twice on Opening Day, joining Dale Long (1956), Richie Hebner (1974), Willie Stargell (1975), Andy Van Slyke (1990), Xavier Nady (2008) and Garrett Jones (2010).
Lowe didn’t know what he accomplished until a reporter told him after the game.
“It’s pretty cool,” he said. “There is never a thought [that goes] through your mind to put yourself in a record book or anything like that. You go out there and roll off the good at-bats and good things come from them.”