The New York Mets defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 11-7 on Opening Day 2026 at Citi Field, knocking reigning Cy Young winner Paul Skenes out of the game after just two-thirds of an inning. Skenes allowed five runs amid defensive errors by Pittsburgh center fielder Oneil Cruz. Rookie Carson Benge hit his first major league home run in a standout debut.
NEW YORK -- Paul Skenes, the Pittsburgh Pirates' ace and 2025 National League Cy Young Award winner, endured a rough Opening Day start Thursday at Citi Field. The right-hander surrendered five runs on 37 pitches in two-thirds of an inning against the New York Mets, marking the shortest outing of his career. Pirates manager Don Kelly removed Skenes early to protect his health, despite the pitcher's desire to continue. 'Paul is a competitor,' Kelly said. 'He wants to stay out there and pitch... But at the bottom of it is Paul's health.' Skenes walked Francisco Lindor to open the inning, followed by a single from Juan Soto. Bo Bichette lofted a sacrifice fly, then Brett Baty's line drive sailed over Oneil Cruz's head for a three-run triple, giving the Mets a 4-2 lead after Pittsburgh had jumped ahead on Brandon Lowe's two-run homer off Mets starter Freddy Peralta. Cruz then lost Marcus Semien's fly ball in the sun -- without his sunglasses -- allowing Baty to score the fifth run. 'He has got to keep working,' Kelly said of Cruz. 'The ball went straight at him. He came in and got a bad read.' The Mets' offense kept pouring it on, drawing nine walks and forcing Pittsburgh pitchers to throw 192 pitches total. Rookie Carson Benge, the Mets' No. 2 prospect, struck out twice early before walking twice and crushing a sweeper from Justin Lawrence for his first career home run in the sixth inning. 'It means the world,' Benge said, with nearly two dozen family members watching. Francisco Alvarez reached base three times, including a home run, and made MLB history with the first successful Automated Ball-Strike challenge, overturning a full-count ball to Cruz into a strikeout. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza praised the team's process: 'It goes to show you we’ve got some dangerous guys.' Skenes took it in stride: 'You have to look at it for what it is -- there wasn’t a ton of hard contact.'
