Yankees vs. Giants live updates: MLB Opening Day predictions, how to watch and latest news

The Yankees and Giants are facing off tonight in the first matchup of the 2026 MLB regular season.
Follow along for live score updates, news, analysis and highlights from today’s game.
Time: 8:05 p.m. ET
Watch: Netflix
Join the conversation: live@theathletic.com
Jared Oliva had two cups of coffee in the big leagues, playing most of his games in front of scattered fans or no fans at all. He spent most of the past six seasons attempting to get back. Now he’ll be an active participant in front of a packed house in San Francisco with the entire baseball world watching the Giants and Yankees open the season.
Buster Posey spoke pregame about selecting Olivia over former top prospect Luis Matos to the team’s Opening Day roster.
With the back-to-back champions in their division and a first-time manager in their own clubhouse, the Giants’ likelihood of winning the NL West or NL pennant is slim. But San Francisco’s season could take other unexpected turns.
The Athletic’s Grant Brisbee offers his three bold predictions for how the San Francisco Giants’ 2026 season will turn out.
Some of the Giants’ top players helped lift Venezuela to a surprise World Baseball Classic title. Luis Arraez and José Buttó were crucial parts of Venezuela’s championship run and will look to parlay their strong performances into fast starts in Giants colors. But the WBC offered big-picture takeaways about the process of emerging as a contender, as well.
The Athletic’s Grant Brisbee explains how the WBC results reveal what the Giants will need to do to succeed in 2026.
17. San Francisco Giants
Logan Webb, RHP, Age: 29
Robbie Ray, LHP, Age: 34
Tyler Mahle, RHP, Age: 31
Adrian Houser, RHP, Age: 33
Landen Roupp, RHP, Age: 27
The Giants’ rotation is led by ace Logan Webb, one of the best ground-ball pitchers in baseball. He also missed a lot of bats last season, striking out 224. Webb and veteran left-hander Robbie Ray give the Giants a solid one-two punch at the top.
The rest of the rotation comes with risk. Tyler Mahle is solid if he can stay healthy. He made only 16 starts last year for the Rangers but did deliver a 2.18 ERA. Adrian Houser is more of a back-of-the-rotation starter who can eat innings, and Landen Roupp has a plus curveball and changeup, but his fastball gets hit.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone speaking pregame on the new MLB season:
💬 “I feel like we’re ready. We’ve had a really good winter and spring of preparation, and I feel like these guys are ready to go. We know we’re about to start a long journey that’s going to be filled with a lot of stuff — good, bad and different unknowns.”
3. New York Yankees
Max Fried, LHP, Age: 32
Cam Schlittler, RHP, Age: 25
Will Warren, RHP, Age: 26
Ryan Weathers, LHP, Age: 28
Luis Gil, RHP, Age: 27
Injured: Gerrit Cole, RHP; Carlos Rodón, LHP; Clarke Schmitt, RHP
The Yankees will begin the year with a trio of starters on the injured list: Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón and Clarke Schmidt. Cole is recovering from his 2025 Tommy John surgery and should be back by late May or early June, Rodón is recovering from his own elbow surgery and should return in late April or early May, and Schmidt is recovering from Tommy John surgery and is projected to return during the second half of the season.
Despite those injuries, the Yankees still have a strong rotation to start the year, led by their ace Max Fried and followed by the up-and-coming Cam Schittler, right-hander Will Warren, newly acquired southpaw Ryan Weathers and former AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil. By season’s end, they could have the best rotation in baseball, especially if Cole can return to his Cy Young Award-caliber form.
For Team USA’s World Baseball Classic opener, manager Mark DeRosa didn’t hand the ball to either of the reigning Cy Young winners in his rotation, Tarik Skubal or Paul Skenes. He gave the nod to San Francisco Giants pitcher Logan Webb, who has become one of the majors’ best and most consistent starting pitchers during the past five seasons.
Webb validated that belief with an impressive showing in the WBC. In 8 2/3 innings of work spread across two starts, the 29-year-old struck out 11 batters and allowed just a single earned run. If Webb can continue that level of pitching in the 2026 season, he will contend for his first NL Cy Young award.
Historical analogue: 2018 Red Sox
2018 Red Sox projection: 88-74
2018 Red Sox actual: 108-54, World Series champions
By 2018, the Red Sox had been back in the postseason two years in a row without winning it all. Overlooked going into that season, they stormed out to a 17-2 record and never looked back en route to one of the more dominant full seasons in recent baseball history. The Yankees have had more playoff success lately but still lack the ultimate prize, and they possess the talent capable of running away in the American League.