Opening Day Fun Facts for 2018
Opening Day is finally here. We’ve made it through the long winter staring out the window waiting on Spring to arrive. We’ve mostly made it through an uncomfortable winter of labor posturing between players and owners, and we’re about to have a bunch of real baseball before the calendar switches over to April. So here are a few Opening Day fun facts to watch for today, which might give you an added incentive to tune in. (As if you weren’t going to already)
Historic Seasons?
Detroit Tigers
The 2018 season is shaping up to be a pretty bad one for the Detroit Tigers, as ownership begins a much-needed rebuilding process. The Tigers aren’t expected to play any meaningful games in the next season, so folks outside of the die-hard fanbase aren’t likely to tune into a game at Comerica Park at all this season. But what if I told you, there is one reason to watch one Tigers game. That despite their best efforts to avoid any significant baseball at any point in the season, the Detroit squad will play one game that matters, the very first game of the season. The Detroit Tigers are currently on a winning streak of potentially historic proportions. The team has won nine consecutive games on Opening Day. With their win last season over the Red Sox, the Tigers passed the 1920’s New York Yankees, who won eight years in a row from 1920-1929 and gained sole possession of third place in the rankings. They now only trail the Pirates, who won 10 straight Opening Day games from 1945-1954, and the Yankees who won 11 straight Opening Day games from 1998-2008. So the Tigers are within striking distance of the record-holding Yanks, and if they can win this year at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates they’ll come within just one game of the all-time record. Ok so maybe an arbitrary Opening Day win streak isn’t the most exciting reason to watch a baseball game. But for fans of a team in rebuild mode, little records and shreds of meaning in games is what gets you through the rough years. The Tigers are not going to win many games this year, or likely the next few years, but imagine if they can just win the first game of the season each year during the rebuild. It would give baseball fans around the globe a reason, just one reason, to watch a Tigers game, just one Tigers game.
Philadelphia Phillies
The last few years have been tough for Phillies fans, after several years of consistent success; the Phillies entered a long rebuild and are only now beginning to emerge on the other side. With the Nationals projected to lead a top-heavy division in the NL East next year, Phillies fans may have to wait a little longer to see their team end their recent playoff drought. However, there is one nasty losing streak the Phillies could drop this year, a streak of six straight Opening Day losses. The Phillies haven’t won on Opening Day since 2011, beginning six consecutive seasons with a loss. Eight other teams in Baseball history have had an Opening Day losing streak that long. Of those eight teams, only three have had a losing streak longer than seven games. While the Phillies may have a ways to go to catch the Dodger’s losing streak of 11 straight Opening Day losses from 1903-1913, losing this year would make the streak one of the longest in history; trailing only those Dodgers; as well as the Rangers from ’63-’70, the Pirates from ’94-’01, and the A’s who nearly caught the Dodgers by losing ten straight from 2005-2014. While the Phillies are likely still a year or two away from fully ending their rebuild and contending in the NL East, what better way to signal the end of a rebuild then by snapping a historically significant losing streak?
It may be an understatement to say that the Tigers and Phillies are not expected to have historically significant seasons in 2018. However, while historically significant seasons may not be possible for these teams in transition, they are both capable of having historically significant beginnings to their seasons. As players report to their first spring warm-ups of 2018 it can be daunting for players to envision the long season ahead of them. Luckily for the players on the Tigers and Phillies, they can truly start the season by focusing on one game at a time as the first game of the season may prove to be their most substantial.
Starting Streaks on the Line
St Louis Cardinals
Yadier Molina has started every Opening Day since 2005. The last catcher to start Opening Day for the Cardinals was Mike Matheny. He’s expected to make the start today, and if he makes it all the way to 1:10 PM healthy and makes the Opening Day start, that ties him for the most consecutive OD starts by a catcher. He already has the most consecutive OD starts by a catcher with a single team.
Who’s the New Guy?
2013 was the last year that no pitcher signed that offseason will start opening day for his team. That streak figures to continue, but not with the guys you’d expect. The Cubs have indicated that Jon Lester will get the start (not new guy Yu Darvish) and Aaron Nola is getting the nod for the Phillies (not new guy Jake Arrieta). It’s the Twins! New Guy Jake Odorizzi will face the Orioles’ Dylan Bundy.
King Felix Hernandez
The King will be just the seventh pitcher to make 10 straight Opening Day starts, regardless of team when he takes the mound for the Mariners.
Enjoy Opening Day!
