Opening day 2015: SN live blog jinxes three potential no-hitters

Justin McGuire

Opening day 2015: SN live blog jinxes three potential no-hitters image

The 2015 baseball season is here. Stay with Sporting News all afternoon for updates, scores, highlights, funny moments and more. Ryan Fagan and Justin McGuire are contributing. 

OPENING DAY 2015: Tanaka's struggles | Live scoreboard  | Must-see photos

7:15 p.m.: And we'll end the afternoon's live blog with Atlanta's win against Miami, a victory that ended with someone other than freshly traded closer Craig Kimbrel recording a save for the Braves. 

7:11 p.m.: Apparently three-run home runs are cheap today, because Jimmy Rollins crushed one for the Dodgers, too. His new team now leads, 6-3.

7:10 p.m.: So ... after the Pirates tied the game on an Andrew McCutchen home run (disproving the Samson theory, btw), the Reds charged back into the lead on a massive homer from Todd Frazier.

It was an upper-deck job, and it gave the Reds a 5-2 lead heading into the top of the ninth. 

6:47 p.m.: So, I stepped away to grab a bite to eat. Here's what we missed, from Twitter ... 

Good times.

6:17 p.m.: Well, that didn't take long. The Royals quickly provided an update on Yordano Ventura, and it's good news. Hallelujah. 

6:15 p.m.: Orioles begin AL East defense with a win.

6:05 p.m.: Ugh. Here's hoping it's nothing, but the folks in Kansas City are really worried right about now. 

Hopefully the Royals' bright young star will be OK. He just signed a five-year extension last week

6:03 p.m.: Hanley Ramirez has an anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better thing going with new teammate Dustin Pedroia, apparently. Pedroia hit two homers against the Phillies and now Ramirez has his second jack of the day. This one counted for four runs. 

5:39 p.m.: So Matt Kemp wasn't too nervous heading back to Dodger Stadium as a member of the rival Padres. All he's done is drive home three new teammates — off Clayton Kershaw, of all people — as San Diego takes a 3-2 lead into the bottom of the fifth.

In the first inning, Kemp singled home Wil Myers. In the fifth, Kemp's two-out double chased home Clint Barmes and Derek Norris. Yep.

5:37 p.m.: Things getting interesting in Kansas City.

5:27 p.m.: Yep, that's my fault. Seems I jinxed my third pitcher of the day. Right after I pointed out that Scherzer was cruising through five no-hit inning, he walked Curtis Granders, then David Wright reached on an error by Dan Uggla.

This was Scherzer's reaction to the error. 

And then Lucas Duda lined a single into right-center, which chased home both runners. So not only did Scherzer lose his no-hitter, but now the Nationals trail, 2-1. Again, apologies, Nationals fans. 

5:19 p.m.: New Padre Wil Myers is still getting the hang of center field.

5:19 p.m.: Apologies in advance, Nationals fans, but I'm going to try this again. Because there is no such thing as a no-hitter jinx, I'll point out that Max Scherzer has yet to give up a hit through five innings against the Mets. He's struck out five and given up a single walk. 

Not a bad debut for a big-money free agent, eh? 

5:02 p.m. : Bryce Harper homers off Bartolo Colon to give the Nationals a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning. Harper sure loves opening day .

4:49 p.m. : Braves-Marlins in a rain delay. Despite ....

4:41 p.m.: Seems Dustin Pedroia was ready for the season to open. In his first at-bat, he homered off Cole Hamels. In his third at-bat, he homered off Hamels. Pedroia hit only seven home runs all of last year and nine in 2013. 

So two in three at-bats to start the season is pretty solid, eh? 

4:22 p.m.: Mike Trout, folks, homered off Felix Hernandez in his first at-bat of the season. For the second year in a row. Seriously. Twitter reacted, as you can imagine. 

4:17 p.m.: Nolan Arenado just grounded out in the sixth inning, but is a triple short of the cycle in Milwaukee as the Rockies still lead the Brewers, 10-0. The way Colorado is hitting today, Arenado could get more than one more shot at a triple.

4:12 p.m.: Some days, you really feel lucky to watch baseball. When Clayton Kershaw is on the mound for the Dodgers and Vin Scully is saying words on your TV, that's one of those days. 

As Matt Kemp strode to the plate, Scully told a story: "In fact, probably the greatest single homecoming in Dodgers Stadium involved Casey Stengel." 

4:11 p.m.: The Yankees lose on opening day for the fourth straight year. Jays win, 6-1.

3:56 p.m.: This was not a good day to start Kyle Lohse on your fantasy team.

3:38 p.m.: We have our first final of the day. Veteran Joe Nathan registers the save for Detroit.

3:35 p.m.: Opening day is a big deal in Cincinnati. A big deal .

 

3:20 p.m.: Travis Snider drives in a run in his first at-bat as an Oriole.

3:13 p.m. Now this is what you call a memorable debut. In his first game in the majors, Blue Jays rookie Devon Travis popped a home run in Yankee Stadium. 

His teammates reacted accordingly. 

3:10 p.m.: Dustin Pedroia gets the year off to good start with a first-inning homer off Cole Hamels in Philadelphia.

 

3:04 p.m. The long Yankee nightmare has ended. Finally, the Bronx fellas scored a run, on a solo homer by Brett Gardner in the bottom of the sixth. There is much rejoicing at Yankee Stadium. Well, a bit of rejoicing. Toronto still leads 5-1.

2:55 p.m. Joe Torre threw out the first pitch before the game at Yankee Stadium. He joined Michael Kay and the fellas in the YES broadcast booth a few innings later. Kay asked how his arm felt. 

"It feels about 74 years old," Torre joked.

And then Kay asked why Torre made the pitch from in front of the mound instead of on the mound.

"Well, I really didn’t have the courage to go up on the mound. I was trying to think of something poetic to say, but …" Torre said with a laugh. "Billy Crystal texted me. He said, 'No mound?' And I texted back, 'No guts.' "

Awesome. 

2:47 p.m.: Alex Rodriguez is now 60 hits shy of 3,000.

2:39 p.m. Colorado's Kyle Kendrick hasn't yet thrown a regular-season pitch for the Rockies (he'd been with the Phillies his entire career) but he already has a four-run lead heading into the bottom of the first. His teammates rattled off four extra-base hits (three doubles and a home run by Chris Dickerson) off Milwaukee starter Kyle Lohse. Not bad, eh? 

Hopefully it's not one of those all-downhill-from-here scenarios for Kendrick and the Rockies. 

2:31 p.m. And there goes Hutchison's no-no. 

Hutchison did escape the inning without giving up a run, which is something, I guess. 

2:19 p.m. So ... maybe they are real. As I was saving in that last update, Price gave up a single to Kennys Vargas. Oops. Apologies in advance to Hutchison.

2:18 p.m. Because jinxes aren't real, we're going to point out that both David Price and Drew Hutchison are working on opening-day no-hitters. That would be cool to see, eh? Hutchison is through three innings for the Blue Jays, and he's only given up the walk to A-Rod. Price is through 4 1/3 innings, and he hasn't allowed a runner. Good times. 

2:03 p.m.: Web gem alert:

2 p.m: A-Rod is at the plate in a regular season game for the first time since 2013.

1:55 p.m.: Masahiro Tanaka is struggling. The Yankee ace just gave up a two-run homer to Edwin Encarnacion in the top of the third. Jays up 5-0.

1:51 p.m.: Russell Martin has his first hit for the Blue Jays, a two-run single to give Toronto a 3-0 lead in the Bronx.

1:49 p.m. : Blue Jays take 1-0 lead on Yankees off Chase Headley error. A-Rod woulda had it.

1:38 p.m. So ... Phil Hughes hasn't had the best opening day. Last year, the Twins ace gave up only 16 homers in 32 starts. Today, he's given up two homers in two innings (I'm not a math major, but that's a worse ratio). Alex Avila popped the second tater, a two-run shot to put the Tigers up, 3-0. 

1:30 p.m. And we have the first home run of the MLB season. It belongs to a Tiger, but not Miguel Cabrera. It's J.D. Martinez, who authored maybe the most surprising offensive season in all of baseball in 2014. 

The homer came off Minnesota's Phil Hughes.

1:08 p.m. The first pitch hasn't been thrown yet today, but we already have our leader in the clubhouse for best sign of the day. This, from Yankee Stadium. 

And now Joe Torre is throwing out the first pitch. Feels. 

And that A-Rod guy is back.

1 p.m.

It's opening day, one of the great days on the baseball calendar.

We'll be keeping you updated on the all the day's happening once the games get started about 1 p.m. ET. In the meantime, here are some links to keep you busy:

The TV schedule for every game today.

Every team's opening day starting pitcher.

Jesse Spector takes a look at every team's best opening day performance ever.

Todd Radom has some classic opening day ticket stubs.

Justin McGuire