Tyler O’Neill made an unusual baseball record on opening day in the stadium he frequently visited as a child in British Columbia. Surprisingly, it happened against the team that drafted him over ten years ago. “Baseball is unpredictable,” O’Neill remarked. “It connects everything like that.”
O’Neill hit a home run in his fifth consecutive opening-day game, setting a new record in Major League Baseball. This helped the Boston Red Sox secure a 6-4 victory against the Seattle Mariners on Thursday night.
Rafael Devers also contributed with a home run and a double against Seattle’s ace, Luis Castillo. However, it was O’Neill’s homer in the eighth inning off Cody Bolton that gave the Red Sox the lead and made history.
O’Neill had previously homered on the opening day for four consecutive years with the St. Louis Cardinals, joining Todd Hundley (1994-97), Gary Carter (1977-80), and Yogi Berra (1955-58). Before joining the Cardinals, O’Neill was a promising prospect in the Mariners organization until he was traded in 2017.
This achievement was witnessed by a large group of O’Neill’s family and friends from British Columbia, who came to see his first game in a Red Sox uniform.
“You always want to start the season with a bang,” O’Neill expressed. “Fortunately, I’ve been able to do it a couple of times now. Just having a lot of fun out there.” The home runs, combined with solid pitching, brought joy to Boston manager Alex Cora, who secured his first opening-day win as a manager.
Devers’ two-run homer and a double were particularly impressive, while Connor Wong’s RBI single also contributed to Boston’s victory. Starting pitcher Brayan Bello limited the damage to Mitch Haniger’s two-run homer, pitching five innings for Boston. Closer Kenley Jansen secured the win with a save.
Although Seattle’s Dylan Moore’s pinch-hit homer brought them closer, Seattle couldn’t catch up. Seattle’s offseason additions, Jorge Polanco and Mitch Garver, faced some challenges adjusting to their new home field. Despite the disappointing start, Seattle manager Scott Servais remains optimistic about the team’s potential.
