Gerrit Cole and Aaron Nola experienced vastly different results on Opening Day. While Cole dominated his first start, Nola was rocked in his season debut.

The right-handed aces will oppose each other for the first time Wednesday when the New York Yankees host the Philadelphia Phillies in the finale of a three-game series.

The Phillies are seeking their second win after evening the series with a 4-1 win on Tuesday. Philadelphia avoided its worst start when Kyle Schwarber hit his 200th career homer on the second pitch of the game and Brandon Marsh also homered.

“It was a good offensive night. I thought we swung the bats well. It’s good to get our first win, but it’s just one win,” Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson said. “We’ve got another game tomorrow. We’ve got a tough pitcher we’re going to face. We’ve gotta knuckle down.”

The Phillies had 10 hits and went deep twice – a big turnaround after they hit one homer while being outscored 37-12 in their first 0-4 start since 2016.

“It’s a great feeling,” Marsh said. “Now we go. It was a good all-around game.”

After the Yankees were held to four hits and scored their lone run on a homer by DJ LeMahieu, Cole (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will attempt to open a season with two straight wins for the second time in four seasons and fourth time overall. He also started 2-0 in his first two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, in 2013 and 2014.

Cole is hoping for results similar to Thursday, when he allowed three hits in six innings of a 5-0 win over the San Francisco Giants. After walking the game’s first hitter, Cole struck out 11 in a 95-pitch outing that saw Cole average 97.8 mph on 61 four-seam fastballs.

“Honestly, after the first batter, I would have told you I would have just been happy to get through five,” Cole said. “I didn’t quite know how it was going to shake out when you fire four high to start the game.”

Cole is 5-3 with a 3.12 ERA in eight career starts against the Phillies. He last faced them Aug. 3, 2020, when he allowed one run and five hits in six innings of a 6-3 win while opposing Jake Arrieta.

Nola (0-0, 12.27) struggled in the latter portion of his season debut Thursday. He allowed five runs on four hits in 3 2/3 innings during Philadelphia’s 11-7 loss to the Texas Rangers.

Nola was unable to protect a 5-0 lead as he allowed a bases-loaded two-run double to Jonah Heim and a three-run homer on a 2-0 fastball to Robbie Grossman.

“You try to bear down a little more (with runners on),” Nola said. “That’s when you really have to make good pitches. I didn’t do that today.”

Nola is 1-1 with a 2.37 ERA in three career starts against the Yankees. He took a 6-4 loss in his last outing against them, on July 20, 2021. He allowed four runs on seven hits over 5 1/3 innings.

–Field Level Media

Ian Happ looks to continue his domination at Great American Ball Park when the Chicago Cubs face the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday afternoon in the rubber game of a three-game series.

Happ, who was an All-American at the University of Cincinnati, reached base a career-high five times and went 3-for-4 to lead the Cubs to a 12-5 rout o Tuesday. Happ is batting .322 with 16 home runs and 37 RBIs in 45 lifetime games at Great American Ball Park.

The Cubs have two newcomers who struggled in their opening series vs. Milwaukee before breaking through in the first two games of the Reds series. Cody Bellinger and Eric Hosmer were a combined 0-for-18 against the Brewers at Wrigley Field.

Bellinger snapped an 0-for-11 with a three-run homer in his first at-bat on Monday, then went 3-for-5 on Tuesday. Eric Hosmer was 0-for-7 against the Brewers before a 3-for-5 effort Monday and a 2-for-5 outing Tuesday.

“The first one’s always nice to get out of the way,” Hosmer said. “It’s like a sense of relief. It feels good to get that first one out of the way, add on to it, but it just feels good to contribute to the offense.”

Cubs manager David Ross said, “You want to get that first (hit of the season) out of the way. You press a little bit, which turns into a little bit of adrenaline and you’re jumpy at the pitcher. And things can kind of break down.”

The Reds also have had a new face step up and contribute in the first week.

Jason Vosler continues to make the most of his chance filling in for Joey Votto (rehab from left biceps and shoulder surgery) at first base for Cincinnati. The 29-year-old has homered in three straight games, including the game-winner in the Reds’ 7-6 victory over the Cubs on Monday.

Vosler came off the bench on Monday when Jose Barrero left due to right hamstring tightness and scored as a pinch runner in the second inning before hitting a go-ahead, three-run shot in the fifth. His snare of a line drive was the final out of Cincinnati’s win, ending a ninth-inning rally.

“It makes it easier when you just kind of try to do a little things right and not try to do too much,” Vosler said. “And a lot of times when I try to do too much is when I struggle. So that home run (Monday), I was just trying to get a single, trying to get a hit and get a man in, and good things happen when you don’t try to do too much.”

Marcus Stroman (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will start for Chicago on Wednesday after beating Milwaukee on Opening Day with six scoreless innings. Dating back to Aug. 23, 2022, the right-hander has allowed fewer than two runs in six of his past eight starts, producing a 1.88 ERA in that stretch.

In two starts against Cincinnati in 2022, Stroman was 2-0 with a 1.64 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 11 innings. He is 4-1 with a 2.55 ERA in six career starts vs. the Reds, having held them to a .205 average.

The Reds will counter with Hunter Greene (0-0, 8.10 ERA), who is coming off a no-decision in Cincinnati’s 5-4 loss to the Pirates on Opening Day.

During his rookie season of 2022, Greene was 2-1 with a 4.80 ERA in three starts against the Cubs. He allowed eight runs on 11 hits over 15 innings, striking out 19 and walking five.

–Field Level Media

Luke Raley, Josh Lowe and Yandy Diaz smashed home runs during a five-run, ninth-inning outburst as the Tampa Bay Rays earned a 10-6 victory over the host Washington Nationals on Tuesday.

With the victory, the 5-0 Rays remained the lone unbeaten team in the major leagues after the Minnesota Twins lost to the Miami Marlins.

Raley and Lowe greeted Washington closer Kyle Finnegan (0-1) with back-to-back long balls to start the rally. With one out, Taylor Walls singled and Jose Siri doubled. Finnegan then left a slider over the middle of the plate, and Diaz crushed a three-run blast 414 feet into the left field bullpens.

Pete Fairbanks closed out the game for the Rays with a scoreless ninth. Ryan Thompson (1-0) earned the win.

Diamondbacks 8, Padres 6

Visiting Arizona scored four runs in the top of the eighth, capitalizing on San Diego miscues to earn a win and a split of a two-game series. Padres star Manny Machado was ejected in the first inning after arguing a third-strike call that was made for a pitch-clock violation.

The Padres had built a 5-1 lead through five innings on an RBI single by Austin Nola, a solo home run by Nelson Cruz, a run scored on a throwing error and a two-run homer by Xander Bogaerts. But the Diamondbacks scored seven runs in the next three innings against the Padres bullpen.

The Diamondbacks pulled to within a run in the sixth on a two-run double by Geraldo Perdomo and an RBI single by Josh Rojas. Arizona then made the most of three singles to score four runs in the eighth against Luis Garcia (0-1). Kevin Ginkel (1-0) earned the win.

Marlins 1, Twins 0

Reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara scattered three singles over nine innings en route to the fourth shutout of his career to lead Miami past visiting Minnesota.

Alcantara (1-0) retired the first 11 batters he faced before yielding an infield single to Trevor Larnach. Michael A. Taylor had a line-drive single in the sixth and Carlos Correa added a single to center in the ninth for the only other Minnesota hits. Alcantara walked one and struck out five. He threw 100 pitches, 68 for strikes.

Kenta Maeda (0-1), making his first start in nearly 600 days after undergoing Tommy John surgery in September 2021 and sitting out the entire 2022 season, allowed one run on three hits over five innings while striking out nine.

Dodgers 5, Rockies 2

Will Smith hit his third home run in three games and Julio Urias went six scoreless innings as Los Angeles pulled off a two-game sweep of visiting Colorado.

Jason Heyward added his second home run in two games, while Max Muncy also went deep for the Dodgers. Urias (2-0) gave up five hits and no walks while striking out six. Evan Phillips got the last two outs for his first save.

Yonathan Daza had two hits for the Rockies, who lost their fourth game in a row. German Marquez (1-1) gave up four runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings, with two walks and four strikeouts.

Pirates 4, Red Sox 1

Bryan Reynolds collected three hits for the second consecutive game to help visiting Pittsburgh beat Boston.

Reynolds hit a solo home run, a double and had an RBI single on Tuesday. His three hits in Pittsburgh’s 7-6 triumph over Boston on Monday night included two home runs. He has four home runs in the past three games.

The Red Sox, who scored 33 runs in their first four games, were held to four hits in the loss. Boston starter Nick Pivetta (0-1) lasted five innings. He gave up three runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks while striking out six.

Cubs 12, Reds 5

Ian Happ went 3-for-4 and reached base a career-best five times and visiting Chicago scored 11 runs over the final four innings to rout Cincinnati.

Happ doubled in a six-run seventh inning and walked twice. Patrick Wisdom doubled twice, drove in three runs and scored twice for the Cubs, who snapped a three-game skid.

Trey Mancini also drove in three runs for the Cubs, who evened the series at a game apiece. Stuart Fairchild homered for the Reds, who had their three-game winning streak snapped. The Reds have homered 10 times in their first five games.

Phillies 4, Yankees 1

Kyle Schwarber hit his 200th career homer two batters into the game, and visiting Philadelphia stopped a season-opening, four-game losing streak with a victory over New York.

Schwarber helped Philadelphia end its early frustration when he hammered a fastball for his 415-foot drive to right field off Domingo German (0-1). Brandon Marsh also homered in the third. Trea Turner and Schwarber added RBI singles in the fifth off Michael King, who was making his second appearance since returning from a broken elbow.

Andrew Bellatti (1-0) fanned two in the fifth and earned the win. The Yankees’ lone run came on DJ LeMahieu’s solo home run with one out in the ninth.

Blue Jays 4, Royals 1

Whit Merrifield scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch against his former team, lifting visiting Toronto to a victory over Kansas City.

Daulton Varsho homered to lead off the sixth inning and Matt Chapman had an RBI single among his three hits and scored a run. Varsho and Kevin Kiermaier each had two of the 11 hits recorded by the Blue Jays, who snapped a three-game losing skid.

Yusei Kikuchi (1-0) overcame Franmil Reyes’ homer to lead off the second inning to keep Kansas City in check. Kikuchi allowed that one run on three hits in five innings. Matt Duffy had three of the four hits for the Royals. Kris Bubic (0-1) took the loss.

Braves 4, Cardinals 1

Austin Riley hit a two-run homer and Orlando Arcia hit a solo shot to lift visiting Atlanta past St. Louis.

Braves starting pitcher Dylan Dodd (1-0) won his big-league debut while allowing one run on six hits in five innings. He struck out three and walked none. A.J. Minter closed out the ninth inning to earn his first save.

Cardinals starting pitcher Steven Matz (0-1) allowed four runs on 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out seven batters and walked one. Willson Contreras’ RBI single produced St. Louis’ only run.

Orioles 7, Rangers 2

Jorge Mateo homered for the second time in as many days, Kyle Gibson allowed two runs over seven innings and Baltimore rolled to a victory in Arlington, Texas.

The Orioles have now won eight straight over the Rangers, dating back to the start of the 2022 season. It was a forgettable Rangers debut for Andrew Heaney (0-1), who allowed all seven runs on seven hits and two walks over 2 2/3 innings.

Baltimore took control of the game with a five-run second inning, highlighted by a three-run home run by Ryan Mountcastle. Cedric Mullins and Ryan McKenna also had RBI hits in the inning. Gibson (2-0) allowed six hits, struck out five and didn’t issue a walk.

Brewers 9, Mets 0

Brian Anderson drove in six runs with two homers and a double and Wade Miley tossed six scoreless innings for his 100th career victory as Milwaukee posted its second consecutive shutout against visiting New York.

Miley (1-0), limited to nine games with the Cubs last season due to injuries, scattered five hits, striking out three and walking none in his season debut.

Rowdy Tellez, Anderson and Garrett Mitchell hit consecutive homers off Mets starter Max Scherzer (1-1) in the sixth inning to put the Brewers up 5-0. Scherzer allowed five runs on eight hits in 5 1/3 innings, striking out two and walking two.

Tigers 6, Astros 3

Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson recorded multi-hit games, with Torkelson producing three RBIs, as visiting Detroit claimed a victory over Houston.

The Tigers secured the three-game series with their second win in as many games. Torkelson produced an RBI double that opened the scoring in the first inning before delivering a two-run home run in the eighth that provided Detroit a measure of insurance.

Matt Manning (1-0) earned the victory after allowing two runs on six hits and two walks with four strikeouts while logging 5 2/3 innings. Framber Valdez (0-1) took the loss.

Mariners 11, Angels 2

Teoscar Hernandez and AJ Pollock each hit two home runs and Luis Castillo pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings as Seattle defeated visiting Los Angeles.

The Mariners snapped a four-game skid and put an end to the Angels’ three-game winning streak. Castillo (1-0) hasn’t allowed a run in two starts this season. On Tuesday, the right-hander allowed two hits, walked two and struck out six.

Angels starter Jose Suarez (0-1), making his season debut, allowed seven runs (six earned) on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings.

Athletics 4, Guardians 3

Tony Kemp singled home Ryan Noda with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, delivering Oakland a walk-off win over visiting Cleveland.

Neither team had scored since the sixth before Noda drew a walk from Cleveland’s fourth pitcher, James Karinchak (0-2), to lead off the ninth.

An Esteury Ruiz infield out advanced Noda to second with two outs, and he scored the game-ender on Kemp’s hit to right. Trevor May (2-1) earned the win after pitching a scoreless top of the ninth.

–Field Level Media

Will Smith hit his third home run in three games and Julio Urias went six scoreless innings as the Los Angeles Dodgers pulled off a two-game sweep over the visiting Colorado Rockies with a 5-2 victory on Tuesday.

Jason Heyward added his second home run in two games, while Max Muncy also went deep as the Dodgers finished their season-opening homestand with a 4-2 record. Muncy, Smith and Mookie Betts each had two hits.

Urias (2-0) gave up five hits and no walks while striking out six. He was the National League ERA champion last season (2.16).

Yonathan Daza had two hits and right-hander German Marquez gave up all three home runs as the Rockies saw their losing streak reach four games after they won the first two of the season.

Marquez (1-1) gave up four runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings, with two walks and four strikeouts.

The Dodgers grabbed a 2-0 lead on Marquez’s eighth pitch of the game. Betts led off with a single, Freddie Freeman grounded out and Smith hit an 0-1 pitch into the seats in left field for his third homer of the season.

After hitting his first home run in a Dodgers uniform Monday, Heyward added another Tuesday. On an 0-1 fastball from Marquez in the third inning, he lined the ball over the wall in right field.

Muncy’s home run, down the right-field line to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning, came on a 3-1 fastball from Marquez. Smith added the Dodgers’ final run on an RBI double in the eighth inning.

Colorado avoided the shutout on Elehuris Montero’s RBI double in the ninth inning. Pinch hitter Mike Moustakas followed that with a sacrifice fly for the final run of the game.

Los Angeles reliever Evan Phillips got the last two outs of the game to earn his first save of the season.

The Dodgers played without rookie Miguel Vargas, who had a sore right thumb and inflammation after he was hit by a pitch Monday. Betts made his second start at second base.

After a day off Wednesday, the Rockies play their home opener Thursday against the Washington Nationals.

–Field Level Media

Tony Kemp singled home Ryan Noda with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday night, delivering the Oakland Athletics a 4-3, walk-off win over the visiting Cleveland Guardians.

Neither team had scored since the sixth before Noda drew a walk from Cleveland’s fourth pitcher, James Karinchak (0-2), to lead off the ninth.

An Esteury Ruiz infield out advanced Noda to second with two outs, from where he scored the game-ender on Kemp’s hit to right.

Trevor May (2-1) earned the win after pitching a scoreless top of the ninth.

May has been the winning pitcher in both Oakland victories this season, while Karinchak has been the loser in both Cleveland defeats.

Each team had three extra-base hits in the game, including Gabriel Arias’ second career home run for the Guardians, who saw a four-game winning streak come to an end.

Neither starting pitcher got a decision.

Guardians ace Shane Bieber, after serving up a two-run third inning, had a 3-2 lead before a wild pitch on a strikeout that would have been the final out of the sixth. Instead, the errant pitch allowed Kemp to dash home with the tying run.

He was pulled after the sixth, charged with three runs on three hits. Bieber walked one and struck out seven.

Ruiz had an RBI double and Jace Peterson had a sacrifice fly in Oakland’s third.

A’s starter JP Sears went 4 2/3 innings, during which he allowed three runs and eight hits. He walked one and struck out five.

Arias’ homer, his first of the season, came off Sears and got Cleveland even in the fourth after Oscar Gonzalez had tripled and scored on an Josh Naylor infield out.

Jose Ramirez produced Cleveland’s final run with a fifth-inning double that scored Myles Straw, who had walked.

–Field Level Media

Teoscar Hernandez and AJ Pollock each hit two home runs and Luis Castillo pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings as the Seattle Mariners defeated the visiting Los Angeles Angels 11-2 on Tuesday night.

Seattle snapped a four-game skid and put an end to the Angels’ three-game winning streak.

Castillo (1-0) hasn’t allowed a run in two starts this season. He went six innings in a no-decision against Cleveland on Opening Day — a game the Mariners won 3-0.

On Tuesday, the right-hander allowed two hits, walked two and struck out six.

Hernandez, acquired in an offseason trade with Toronto, hit a solo homer to center field leading off the fourth inning against Angels lefty Jose Suarez (0-1). Hernandez added a three-run blast to left-center field off Suarez with one out in the fifth to extend Seattle’s lead to 6-0.

Pollock, signed as a free agent in the offseason, lined a two-run homer to left center later in the fifth to cap a five-run inning. He added a two-run shot in the seventh. Both homers came off Jaime Barria.

Suarez, making his season debut, allowed seven runs (six earned) on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings. He didn’t walk a batter and fanned four.

Seattle scored in the bottom of the first inning as Julio Rodriguez led off with a double, took third on a throwing error by third baseman Luis Rengifo and scored on a wild pitch.

Hernandez made it 2-0 with his solo shot in the fourth. Eugenio Suarez followed with a single to center, Cal Raleigh doubled into the left field corner and Eugenio Suarez scored on Pollock’s groundout to make it 3-0.

With one out in the fifth, Rodriguez doubled and Ty France reached on an infield single, setting the stage for Hernandez’s second homer. Eugenio Suarez singled to left to end the other Suarez’s night before Pollock went deep.

In the seventh, France led off with a double and scored on Raleigh’s two-out single. Pollock then homered again to make it 11-0.

The Angels finally got on the board in the eighth after loading the bases with no outs against Paul Sewald. Hunter Renfroe singled to left to bring home the first run, and the second scored on Brandon Drury’s sacrifice fly.

–Field Level Media

The Baltimore Orioles called up top-ranked pitching prospect Grayson Rodriguez on Wednesday in time to make his major league debut against the Texas Rangers.

Rodriguez, 23, was expected to compete for a spot in the Orioles’ Opening Day rotation, but the right-hander struggled to a 7.04 ERA in 15 1/3 innings during spring training. He allowed 14 runs (11 earned) in his final 10 2/3 innings of spring, and was optioned to Triple-A Norfolk.

In a corresponding move, the Orioles placed right-hander Kyle Bradish on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to Tuesday. He was struck on the right foot by a line drive on Monday night.

Bradish’s injury threw off the pitching rotation, as Tyler Wells was needed to pitch in relief instead of making his scheduled start Tuesday. Kyle Gibson moved up a day in the rotation to pitch Tuesday, leaving a spot open for Rodriguez to start Wednesday afternoon’s game against the Rangers in Arlington, Texas, against Jacob deGrom.

Rodriguez was selected with the 11th overall pick of the 2018 MLB Draft. Across parts of five minor league seasons, he has posted a 25-9 record with a 2.49 ERA in 70 appearances (69 starts).

In his one start with Norfolk this season, he gave up three runs (two earned) in four innings against the Durham Bulls. He struck out two and walked four, his most walks since 2019.

–Field Level Media