Opener (baseball)
A reliever starts a game, then yields to a long reliever.
An opener, or opening pitcher, is a pitcher who begins a baseball game but is only expected to record a few outs before being replaced by a long reliever, known as a follower. This contrasts with traditional starting pitchers, who are expected to pitch as many innings as possible. The strategy, named in reference to the established term "closer," gained prominence in Major League Baseball during the 2018 season.
Quick Facts
- Field
- Baseball
- Known for
- Pitching strategy where a reliever starts a game before being replaced by a long reliever
Facts from the source article.
Overview
By the 1980s, MLB teams had adopted five-man starting rotations, with all other pitchers serving as relievers. Traditionally, a starter was expected to throw the most innings in a game, typically until they became ineffective, reached a pitch count threshold, or finished the game. In 2016, fantasy sports champion Steven Neistein met with the Tampa Bay Rays to discuss competing against the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox despite a low payroll. Neistein theorized that if the opposition did not know who would pitch the bulk of the innings after the starter, there would be a competitive advantage. His game theories and algorithms on lineup construction helped create the concept of the opener, which has since been used by all 30 MLB teams. In the 21st century, baseball writers argued that starting pitchers become less effective the more times they face opposing hitters in a game. Dave Fleming, writing for Bill James Online in 2009, proposed a "3-3-3 rotation" limiting pitchers to three innings. Bryan Grosnick, writing for SB Nation's Beyond the Box Score in 2013, suggested using an opening pitcher for an inning or two before a traditional starter. In his 2016 book Ahead of the Curve, Brian Kenny noted that the first inning is typically the highest-scoring inning, so a team should use a relief pitcher to shut down the top of the batting order. One advantage of the opener is that a hard-throwing specialist can face the most dangerous hitters, usually near the top of the order, the first time they bat. If the opener succeeds, the next pitcher faces less-dangerous hitters. The strategy also disrupts the timing of top-of-the-order hitters, who are not used to seeing different pitchers each at-bat, and allows the follower to face the top of the lineup two times rather than three.
Antecedents
Early uses of an opener often aimed to influence the opposing team's batting lineup. In Game 7 of the 1924 World Series, the Washington Senators started right-handed Curly Ogden, who pitched to only two batters before a left-handed pitcher was brought in, locking the opposing team into their left-handed lineup. In Game 6 of the 1990 National League Championship Series, the Pittsburgh Pirates opened with right-handed reliever Ted Power before installing announced starter Zane Smith, attempting to get the Cincinnati Reds to change their lineup. A notable early use to improve pitching performance occurred in 1993, when the Oakland Athletics, with a poor starting rotation, split pitchers into platoons with dedicated relievers. The experiment lasted only six games before the Athletics returned to a traditional rotation. Ron Darling, a member of that team, called it "a precursor to all the things that you see today." On the last day of the 2007 season, Tony La Russa and Dave Duncan used an opener for the St. Louis Cardinals, handing the ball to longtime closer Troy Percival for his only career start. Percival worked one inning before being relieved by Kip Wells, a traditional starter. La Russa's strategy resembled a full-scale bullpen game, as Wells threw only three scoreless innings and 42 pitches before being replaced by Braden Looper; the Cardinals used ten pitchers in that game.
Emergence and subsequent use
The Tampa Bay Rays first tried using an opener on May 19, 2018, when their record stood at 15–18. The pitcher they chose for this role was Sergio Romo, a seasoned reliever who had previously worked as a closer. Romo started games on May 22 and 23 before moving back to closing duties in June, though the team kept using the opener strategy. After that, Ryne Stanek, Diego Castillo, or Hunter Wood typically began the game, then gave way to Ryan Yarbrough, Yonny Chirinos, or Jalen Beeks. The Rays did not use an opener when their top starter, Blake Snell, was on the mound. After adopting the approach, the team’s earned run average dropped. Their openers posted a 3.97 ERA over 93 innings, better than the league average of 4.15. The Rays also tested the opener with their Double-A and Triple-A affiliates that summer. The club turned its season around, climbing from 15–18 to finish 90–72, their first winning record since 2013, though they missed the postseason. The idea spread to other teams in 2018. In June, the Los Angeles Dodgers used Scott Alexander as an opener because of injuries in their rotation. The Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, and Texas Rangers also tried openers during the final month of the season. In September, the Athletics used the opener in nine games, going 4–5 with a 1.86 ERA; Liam Hendriks served as the opener in eight of those contests. Oakland also used Hendriks as the opener in the 2018 American League Wild Card Game, but it did not work. During the 2018 National League Championship Series, the Milwaukee Brewers had starter Wade Miley open Game 5. He faced just one batter before being pulled, making him only the second pitcher in MLB playoff history to start a game and see a single batter.
Decline
Commissioner Rob Manfred stated before the 2024 season that he wanted to discourage the use of openers and shift back to traditional starting pitchers. He linked this to a broader goal of boosting offense and reducing injuries, noting that pitchers on strict pitch counts might throw harder and face a higher risk of ligament damage. A rule that would have required most starters to pitch at least six innings was proposed but put on hold. Despite no rule change, opener usage dropped significantly in 2024. By May, only nine openers had started games, putting the league on track for 33 such starts over the full season. Jon Becker suggested the decline came from teams themselves, not the commissioner’s office. The San Francisco Giants fired manager Gabe Kapler, a strong advocate of openers, while the Tampa Bay Rays had more starting pitcher depth than the prior year, similar to their 2020 roster. Openers have also been partly replaced by full bullpen games. The Los Angeles Dodgers, under Dave Roberts, had used openers due to rotation injuries but turned to bullpen games during the 2024 postseason, going 2–2 in those contests.
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