Wells Leads Off with a Bang as Yankees Top Brewers on Opening Day

Austin Wells wasted no time making history, becoming the first catcher in MLB history to hit a leadoff home run on Opening Day as the Yankees defeated the Brewers 4–2.

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Carlos Rodón set the tone early, igniting the Yankee Stadium crowd with a quick 1-2-3 top of the first. Then, in his first career start as a leadoff hitter, Wells delivered in style, smacking a high 2-0 fastball from Brewers ace Freddy Peralta into the right-field seats.

The Yankees didn’t stop there. Shortstop Anthony Volpe added his own solo blast in the second inning, extending New York’s lead.

To his credit, Peralta settled in after the early homers. The right-hander from the Dominican Republic pitched five innings, striking out eight while allowing just four hits.

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Rodón, stepping into the Opening Day starter role following Gerrit Cole’s Tommy John surgery, was equally impressive. He exited in the sixth inning to a standing ovation, having allowed just one run on four hits with seven strikeouts over 5.1 innings.

Yankees captain Aaron Judge padded the Yankees' lead in the sixth when his ground ball deflected off third base and rolled into the outfield, bringing home a run. Former NL MVP Cody Bellinger, one of New York’s more notable offseason additions, followed with an RBI single of his own. Another high-profile acquisition, Paul Goldschmidt, also made his Yankees debut.

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Milwaukee’s offense struggled against Rodón and the Yankees' bullpen. Vinny Capra launched a solo homer—the first of his MLB career. The Brewers’ best chance came in the ninth against their former closer, Devin Williams. Williams was sent to New York in an offseason blockbuster that sent Nestor Cortes Jr. to Milwaukee. Cortes is slated to start against his former team on Saturday.

Williams seemed to have nerves and faced immediate trouble, loading the bases with no outs. However, he settled down, allowing just a sacrifice fly from Brice Turang before slamming the door on his former club.

The Yankees, coming off an AL pennant and an offseason filled with major changes—including the departure of Juan Soto to the Mets—start the season on a high note.