SAN FRANCISCO – The Yankees heard all winter that they were “running it back,” as though that constituted a flaw. They prefer to view it as a strength.
Cast in a starring role for Major League Baseball’s opener on Netflix Wednesday, the Yankees looked every bit ready for prime time. Their offense came at the Giants in waves, building an early lead that allowed Max Fried to cruise in a 7-0 victory on Opening Night at Oracle Park.
“This team led the Majors in runs scored [849] last year, and we have a lot of the same guys back,” Fried said. “One through nine, we can beat you. We obviously have the best player in the world [Aaron Judge] hitting for us, but we also have a lot of really good guys able to support him.”
Following a pregame spectacle that featured dancers, a patriotic smoke display, a pair of yellow Ford Crown Victoria taxis parked in front of the visiting dugout and a cable car on the home side, the Yankees took over the show.
“You want to get that first win, first hits,” manager Aaron Boone said. “You want to get into that normal rhythm of the season, which takes a little bit of time. Obviously, it was a great way to start things.”
Trent Grisham’s two-run triple highlighted a five-run second inning as the Yankees pounced on right-hander Logan Webb. Ryan McMahon added a two-run single in the frame as the Bombers secured their fifth consecutive Opening Day win (2022-present).
“I think guys were just going up there, doing what the game asked them to do and take their knocks,” McMahon said. “We put a bunch of balls in play, found a couple of holes and ended up putting up a good number.”
José Caballero, Giancarlo Stanton and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also drove in runs facing Webb, who surrendered seven runs (six earned) over five innings.
“On a night when we didn’t hit the ball out of the ballpark, we had a lot of good pressurized at-bats,” Boone said. “We can beat you in a lot of different ways.”
The game also featured the first use of the Automatic Ball-Strike (ABS) system in a Major League contest. Caballero tapped his helmet to challenge a fourth-inning called strike from Webb, which was confirmed.
“I wanted to go for it,” Caballero said. “I thought it was a little higher than what it showed, but at least it was close.”
Otherwise, the display wasn’t out of character for the Yanks, who remodeled their lineup mostly in this fashion from the Trade Deadline forward.
“We have faith in all the guys here, from top to bottom, all the way to the end of the bench and the back of the bullpen,” Grisham said.
Fried filled the role of Yankees ace last season, but because of the timing of Gerrit Cole’s injury, he did not receive the honor of an Opening Day start.
That changed this year. Fried admitted he was “searching” throughout an erratic first inning that began with a four-pitch walk to leadoff hitter Luis Arraez.
The run support helped Fried settle in, beginning his second season in New York on a strong note. He became the first Yankee since David Cone (1996) to toss at least 6 1/3 scoreless innings on Opening Day.
“I’ll definitely take it,” Fried said. “It wasn’t the sharpest, but at the end of the day, we won the game. I got deep into the game. You take it and you move on.”
Said Boone: “That’s what an ace looks like when he’s grinding. He set the tone for us.”
Perhaps the only thing that didn’t go the Yankees’ way: playing in a Bay Area series that represents a homecoming for the Linden, Calif., product, Judge struck out in his first four at-bats and finished 0-for-5, becoming the first reigning Most Valuable Player to fan four times in his team’s first game of a season.
But therein lay a silver lining – if the Yankees are putting up seven runs while Judge takes an 0-fer, imagine how they can perform when he’s clicking.
“We’ve got a lot to prove,” Boone said. “We’re confident in our ability to have good at-bats and put up runs, but we’re one game into this thing. We’ve still got a long ways to go.”