PHILADELPHIA - It did not take Kyle Schwarber very long to find the seats in 2026.
The National League home run leader hit 56 home runs last season for the Phillies. Schwarber finished runner up for the National League MVP award to Shohei Ohtani.
Determined to build off a tremendous year, Schwarber connected with a Nathan Eovaldi curveball, giving the Phillies a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first.
Heading into Thursday, the Phillies had five players make the Opening Day roster. Justin Crawford and Andrew Painter, were set to make their big league debuts.
Crawford got the start in centerfield, where he will be the primary option for the team moving forward. In his first big league plate appearance, Crawford lined a single back up the middle.
With his family in attendance, the young prospect checked off his first big league hit.
In his second opportunity, Crawford would repeat his success. Another single up the middle gave him his second hit on the afternoon against Eovaldi, a Cy Young caliber arm in Major League Baseball.
Crawford would finish his debut two for four with a run scored.
Without a doubt, this is Cristopher Sanchez's team now.
Sanchez blossomed in 2024, paving the way for an elite 2025 season. He finished runner up to Paul Skenes in the National League Cy Young award voting but unlike Skenes, pushed the Phillies into the playoffs.
After Zack Wheeler left the team in late-August, Sanchez had to step into the role of being the staff's ace.
He took it and ran.
Heading into 2026, it is Sanchez, not Wheeler that will be asked to carry the Phillies back to the postseason. He got off to a great start on Opening Day.
Sanchez finished with 6.0 innings pitched, allowed just three hits, and struck out 10.
His is the first Phillies pitcher with double digit strikeouts on Opening Day since Curt Schilling in 1997 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Alec Bohm was seeking his first knock of the year.
With two men on, Eovaldi had gotten Bryce Harper and Schwarber to strike out. With an opportunity to prove he should be the cleanup hitter, Bohm capitalized.
Sending a ball the opposite way, Bohm would hit his first career Opening Day home run. Driving in three, the Phillies extended their lead to a 5-0 score.
With a 5-0 lead in the ninth, the Phillies turned the game over to new reliever Kyle Backhus.
In a low leverage position, Backhus could not find his rhythm.
A single, home run, and single gave Texas three straight hits, as well as two runs on the board. The next batter would ground into a fielder's choice, but a throwing error by Bryce Harper moved the runner to third.
With the game in danger, Jhoan Duran entered.
A strikeout to Ezequiel Duran would give the Phillies their second out of the frame.
The next batter was Danny Jansen. The Rangers' catcher would drive a ball back up the middle, scoring the runner from third. This made it a 5-3 ballgame.
Trea Turner went 2/4, with two singles and two runs scored.
Bryson Stott also went 2/4 on the day, hitting two singles and swiping a base.
Brandon Marsh doubled twice, going 2/4 on the afternoon.
Bryce Harper and Adolis Garcia each had a rough afternoon. Both players went 0/4 with two strikeouts.
