The 2026 Major League Baseball (MLB) opens this week on Wednesday, 25 March, when the New York Yankees will play the San Francisco Giants at 8pm. For professional baseball players, being on the Opening Day roster is considered to be a milestone, and for pitchers, in particular, to open the season of is a big deal.
This year, there will be 15 opening day games, and fully 33% of them will have a Dominican pitcher opening for his team. Five very good pitchers from the Dominican Republic, Luis Severino, Freddy Peralta, Cristopher Sanchez, Sandy Alcantara, and Jose Soriano will be on the mound to throw the first pitch of the 2026 MLB season.
Christopher Sanchez had an outstanding 2025 season, coming in second in the voting for the Cy Young Award. He will be opening the season for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Curiously, three of the five were part of the rotation for the Dominican National Team in the World Baseball Classic, and all three did quite well. Freddy Peralta will take the mound for the Milwaukee Brewers, and Luis Severino will have the honor for the Oakland Athletics. Jose Soriano will open for the Los Angeles Angels, and his compatriot, Sandy Alcantara will do the same for the Miami Marlins.
A separate report in Listin Diario mentions there are 12 Dominicans active in the MLB 2026 season with contracts that add up to more than US$270 million.
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Listin Diario
Listin Diario
23 March 2026