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Nasim Nunez 2B | WAS
Nationals' Nasim Nunez: Swipes first bag of year
Nunez went 0-for-2 with a walk, a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base in Thursday's win over the Cubs.
Getting the start at second base and batting seventh, Nunez made an immediate impact with his speed when he drew a one-out walk and stole second in the sixth inning before scoring on a Ben Brown wild pitch. Nunez came into the season with 17 steals in 20 attempts over 90 big-league games in a utility role, giving him significant stolen-base upside if he hits enough to hang onto a starting spot at the keystone for the Nats.
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Brady House 3B | WAS
Nationals' Brady House: Starts season with bang
House went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run and a second run scored in Thursday's win over the Cubs.
The 22-year-old third baseman also struck out twice, but the contact he did make was extremely hard -- House scorched a single to center field in the fourth inning that left his bat at 106.7 mph, before crushing a first-pitch fastball from Jacob Webb in the ninth that had an exit velocity of 110.8 mph as it soared over the right-field wall. House was batting third for the Nationals on Opening Day against left-hander Matthew Boyd, and while he might slip down the lineup against righties, he'll retain a spot in the heart of the order on an everyday basis if he unlocks his power in 2026.
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Jacob Young CF | WAS
Nationals' Jacob Young: Surprises with Opening Day power
Young went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Thursday's win over the Cubs.
The light-hitting center fielder swatted a Ben Brown four-seamer the other way in the fourth inning, just clearing the right-field wall at Wrigley Field for the sixth homer of Young's career in his 304th MLB game. The 26-year-old is in the lineup for his glove, not his offensive contributions, after he slashed .231/.296/.287 over 364 plate appearances in 2025 with just two long balls and 15 steals in 26 attempts.
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Brad Lord RP | WAS
Nationals' Brad Lord: Nabs Opening Day win in relief
Lord (1-0) allowed one run on four hits over 2.1 innings of relief Thursday, earning the win in a 10-4 victory over the Cubs. He struck out one without walking a batter.
Cade Cavalli got the start but recorded only 11 outs on 75 pitches before getting the hook, and Lord was the Nat reliever handed the win by the official scorer. Lord is likely to have a versatile role out of the bullpen, getting used for longer stints but also potentially being a part of the high-leverage mix after the right-hander posted a 4.34 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 108:43 K:BB over 130.2 innings as a rookie in 2025 while starting 19 of his 48 appearances.
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Luis Robert CF | NYM
Mets' Luis Robert: On base three times in Mets debut
Robert went 2-for-4 with a walk, a run scored and two RBI in Thursday's win over the Pirates.
Batting fifth in his Mets debut, Robert was a big part of an offensive eruption that saw his new team score 11 runs and chase Paul Skenes from the game in the first inning. Robert's athletic gifts have never been in question, but the 28-year-old center fielder has rarely been able to stay healthy during his career, playing more than 110 games only once in six seasons with the White Sox and struggling to a .223/.288/.372 slash line with a 29.7 percent strikeout rate in 2024-25. If he's able to stay in the lineup for New York, he's still capable of putting together a big campaign.
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Francisco Alvarez C | NYM
Mets' Francisco Alvarez: Goes yard on Opening Day
Alvarez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a second run scored in Thursday's win over the Pirates.
The 24-year-old catcher went back-to-back with rookie Carson Benge in the sixth inning off Justin Lawrence. Alvarez has been slowed by injuries the last couple seasons and hasn't come close to the 25 homers he launched in his first full big-league season in 2023, but he could be ready to put things together in 2026 if he can stay in the lineup.
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Francisco Lindor SS | NYM
Mets' Francisco Lindor: Crosses plate three times in opener
Lindor went 0-for-2 with three walks and three runs scored in Thursday's win over the Pirates.
The All-Star shortstop set the table for a Mets attack that erupted for 11 runs on Opening Day and chased Paul Skenes from the game in the first inning. Lindor didn't get much of a chance to show just how much he's recovered from his mid-February hamate bone surgery, but if this performance was a preview of things to come for the new-look New York offense, he could approach the career-high 129 runs he scored back in 2018 for Cleveland.
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Carson Benge RF | NYM
Mets' Carson Benge: Makes immediate impact in debut
Benge went 1-for-3 with two walks, a solo home run, a second run scored and a stolen base in Thursday's win over the Pirates.
Starting in right field and batting eighth in his big-league debut, the 23-year-old top prospect got hold of a first-pitch sweeper from Justin Lawrence in the sixth inning and drove it into the bullpen in right-center field. In the process, Benge became just the second Met in history to homer on Opening Day in his first MLB game, joining Kazuo Matsui. Benge struck out in his other two plate appearances, but that won't take anything away from a dazzling debut as he makes a very early statement that he should viewed as a favorite to win the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
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Kyle Stowers 1B | MIA
Marlins' Kyle Stowers: Goes through workout Wednesday
Stowers (hamstring) was able to throw, hit and run during a workout Wednesday, and he had no issues afterward, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
The 28-year-old outfielder is beginning the season on the IL and will be re-evaluated in 3-to-4 weeks, meaning that Stowers will probably need at least a brief rehab assignment before he's ready to make his 2026 debut in late April or early May. If he continues to make good progress in his recovery, however, he could return on the short end of that estimate. The Marlins will miss having Stowers' bat in the lineup after he had a breakout 2025, slugging 25 homers with a .912 OPS in 117 contests.
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Geraldo Perdomo SS | ARI
Diamondbacks' Geraldo Perdomo: Provides offense in loss
Perdomo went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Thursday's 8-2 loss to the Dodgers.
Perdomo gave the Diamondbacks the lead with his fourth-inning home run off Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but that was all the offense the team could muster. After the homer, Los Angeles pitching retired 18 of the final 19 Arizona batters. So far so good for Perdomo as he looks to prove that his breakout 2025 season (20 HR, 100 RBI) was no fluke.