Judge homers, Cole strikeouts 11, Yankees blank Giants on opening day
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NEW YORK — Anthony Volpe heard the Bleacher Creatures chant his name during his first Roll Call, and the 21-year-old New York Yankees shortstop turned toward the right field seats, raised his glove hand in tribute and with his right hand lifted the interlocking "NY" crest of his jersey to his lips.
"It was probably the most fun day in my entire life," Volpe said. "I probably had goosebumps the whole day."
Volpe went 0 for 2 with a walk, stolen base and two nice defensive plays in his major league debut, a 5-0 opening-day win over the San Francisco Giants at Yankee Stadium on Thursday.
Aaron Judge followed his record-setting 2022 by homering on his first swing as Yankees captain and Gerrit Cole (1-0) struck out 11 in six scoreless innings. Gleyber Torres added a two-run, opposite-field homer to right in the fourth and Judge blooped an RBI broken-bat single in a two-run seventh that included DJ LeMahieu's run-scoring single.
Volpe grew up a Yankees fan in Manhattan and his family moved to New Jersey when he was in the fourth grade. He attended Delbarton School in Morristown, New Jersey, and was selected by the Yankees with the 30th overall pick in the 2019 amateur draft.
He earned the shortstop job during spring training after just 22 games of Triple-A experience. The decibel level increased markedly when he was introduced before the game and again when Volpe came to the plate for the first time leading off the third inning.
"I almost felt like he was chasing 62 there for his first at-bat, the way the crowd was," Judge said.
In his new role of Yankees captain, Judge gave Volpe some advice Wednesday while they were together in the clubhouse.
"I was kind of ragging him a little bit," Judge recalled. "I said, 'Man, I know you're a big Yankee fan, but you got to have something special for those Bleacher Creatures.'"
That's when Volpe came up with the crest kiss.
"I kind of just thought of it on the spot, just 'cause I remember he did it last year," Volpe said. "He gave me the thumbs-up, so I knew that's what I had to do."
Volpe stayed in Manhattan on Wednesday night, got to the stadium about 8:45 a.m. and took photos of the ballpark exterior with his phone that he shared with his parents. About 60 family members attended the game.
He walked, grounded out and struck out. Volpe made a fine defensive play in the fourth, coming in to field Thairo Estrada's three-hopper, and he started a double play on Wilmer Flores' sixth-inning grounder.
Volpe switched from from No. 77 to No. 11 after calling former Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner and asking for permission to take the number, last used by Gardner in 2021.
"His impact on the clubhouse to this day is ginormous," Volpe said. "Obviously we have leaders in the clubhouse but I think he played a huge role in making those players leaders and taking them under their wing the same way those guys are now taking me under their wing."
K CORNER
Logan Webb (0-1) set a Giants opener strikeout record with 12, one more than Madison Bumgarner in 2017.
Cole broke the Yankees opener strikeout mark of nine by Tim Leary in 1991. Among those he fanned was his brother-in-law, Brandon Crawford.
Cole and Webb joined Dave McNally and Sam McDowell in 1970, and Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom in 2019 as the only opposing starters with double-digit strikeouts in an opener since 1901.
Wandy Peralta, Jonathan Loáisiga and Ron Marinaccio finshed a four-hitter for the Yankees first opening-day shutout win since 1988.
SPEEDING ALONG
On the first day of the pitch clock, there was just one violation, on J.D. Davis at the plate in the ninth. The game took 2 hours, 33 minutes.
NEW FACE
Michael Conforto went 1 for 4 with two strikeouts in his Giants debut.
POLO GROUNDS
Giants manager Gabe Kapler on Wednesday visited the site of the Polo Grounds, the Giants' home from 1891-1957. The Giants opened in New York for the first time since beating Pittsburgh 4-3 in 1956, their next-to-last season before moving to California.
UP NEXT
New York RHP Clarke Schmidt and San Francisco RHP Alex Cobb are scheduled to start Saturday, when rain is forecast.
Fans take Nostalgia Train to Yankee Stadium for Opening Day
Some Yankee fans got a special ride to Yankee Stadium for Opening Day.
Dozens of fans cheered as the Nostalgia Train pulled into Grand Central.
The New York Transit Museum's 1917 IRT LOV Nostalgia Train and the Train of Many Colors made the annual trip from Grand Central to Yankee Stadium.
MTA leaders are reminding Yankee fans that the fastest way to the stadium is via public transportation.
Opening day photo gallery
Gerrit Cole sets Opening Day strikeout record
In his first start of the season, Gerrit Cole recorded 11 strikeouts, the most ever by a Yankees starter on Opening Day.
Cole exited after six strong innings. He allowed three hits and no runs.
Gleyber goes boom as Yankees extend lead
Gleyber Torres hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning on Thursday, upping the Yankees' lead over the Giants to 3-0.
Gerrit Cole has 10 strikeouts and has allowed just one hit.
Anthony Volpe walks in first MLB at-bat
Anthony Volpe, who hails from Watchung, New Jersey, and attended high school at the Delbarton School, won the starting shortstop job with the Yankees in spring training.
In his first major league at-bat Thursday against the Giants, the 21-year-old walked and stole second, but was left stranded.
The Yankees lead 1-0 in the top of the fourth inning.
Gerrit Cole dealing early
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole doesn't seem to mind the cooler temperatures and new pitch clock rules.
The veteran right-hander recorded eight strikeouts in the first three innings against the Giants on Thursday, routinely hitting close to 100 mph on his fastball.
The Bombers lead 1-0 in the bottom of the third.
Judge picks up right where he left off, homers in 1st inning
Aaron Judge, fresh off his American League-record 62-homer season in 2022, got the Yankees going with a solo shot off of the Giants' Logan Webb in the first inning on Thursday.
Only 62 more to go for another record.
Previewing the season
Chilly home opener
Yankee Stadium is dressed up for Opening Day and there's amplified excitement around the team this year. But bundle up, it's cold!
New Jersey's own Anthony Volpe is making his debut. Volpe will be the Yankees' youngest starting shortstop since Derek Jeter.
It's always a special day for others, including Yankees manager Aaron Boone.
"It's amazing. This is an important day to me, all of you, I'm sure, that make a living in this game or covering this game. This is all I know. It has always been a holiday experience for me and my family. It's an important day. It's a day that I feel like everyone involved needs to appreciate it and take stock of it and look around, and embrace what today means. The start of that pursuit of a championship," said Boone.
The Yankees are hoping this is the first step in another championship season.
Chopper 2 over Yankee Stadium
New season, new rules
Baseball fans are in for some big changes this season.
Officials say they are aimed at speeding up the game and stepping up the action.
CLICK HERE for a closer look from CBS News.
First pitch set for 1:05 p.m.
The New York Yankees are set to open the 121st season in franchise history against the San Francisco Giants.
Pre-game ceremonies begin at 12:30 p.m. with the introduction of both teams on the baselines, and the first pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.
Joining the Yankees lineup for the first time will be Watchung, New Jersey native Anthony Volpe. Raised only about 30 miles west of the Bronx, Volpe grew up a Yankees fan and, more specifically, a Derek Jeter fan.
"There was some sort of clinic in New York City, where a bunch of Yankees were at. I think, Tino Martinez, Jeter. When we finally got there, I was so shy and crying that I wouldn't go out on to the field. I was like balling, crying. I don't know if you can see in the picture, but I field a groundball and I just run off to go see my mom. Apparently [Jeter] grabbed me and made me high-five him," Volpe told CBS2's Steve Overmyer.
Bruce Shatel coached Volpe when he was in high school -- just three years ago. At the age of 21, he is the youngest shortstop since Jeter.
"It's New York and people are going to make that comparison but time will tell, and there is a lot of baseball ahead of Anthony to see if he can fill those shoes," Shatel said.
With the team's first game Thursday, you may notice a few other things happening differently this season.
Pitchers will now have 15 seconds to throw a pitch, 20 seconds when a runner is on base, and batters must be ready to hit by the time the clock reaches eight seconds.
Another big change is the infield shift is no longer allowed, which means two players must be on each side of the infield.
The bases are also getting bigger by three inches.
"Which is great, because I hate getting home at 11-o-clock at night," one fan told CBS2.
The MLB commissioner said the chances were the result of reaching out to fans and realizing they wanted to see games with better pace and more action.
All eyes on Volpe
The excitement around Opening Day is even more intense for one New Jersey family.
Anthony Volpe, a Watchung native, will be in the Yankees' starting lineup against the San Francisco Giants on Thursday.
CBS2's Steve Overmyer shares his story.