Apr 6, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; First base featuring opening day graphics prior to the first inning between the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox on opening day at Citizens bank Park. The Red Sox won 8-0. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
After day one is in the books, there are still 161 games left on tap. It’s far too soon to jump to conclusions or make educated guesses as to which clubs will succeed and which will falter. The same can be said from an individual players perspective.
Opening Day has been celebrated with pageantry for many decades in MLB. It brings with it new hopes, story lines and the arrival of spring as an eventual segue into the hot months of summer — something most baseball fans north of the equator look forward to annually.
Before we get to the analytical slideshow, here are some quick takes. As expected, the Tampa Bay Rays drew the fewest fans to their home park on Opening Day with 31,042 in attendance. The Dodgers drew over 53,00 for first place which bodes well for the expensive product they are putting on the field in 2015.
Some of the more notable people throwing out opening pitches was Eric Gagne at Dodger Stadium, Joe Torre at Yankee Stadium and at Wrigley Field, the legacy of the late Ernie Banks was honored when his two sons, Joey and Jerry, threw out the ceremonial first pitch and led the way by singing ‘Take Me Out to the Ball Game’ for the seventh inning stretch.
Home teams went 7-7 and 29 total home runs were knocked out of the park yesterday. Last year home teams went 7-6 and clubbed 24 combined long balls.
After two days worth of games, there are some things we all learned. Here are five of the more glaring takeaways from Opening Day 2015.
Next: Tanaka is in trouble