Luis Severino to Open on Opening Day for the Oakland Athletics
Dominican pitcher Luis Severino has been designated as the Opening Day starter by the Oakland Athletics for the start of the 2026 Major League Baseball season.
The confirmation came from manager Mark Kotsay, who expressed his confidence in the right-hander’s experience to face the Toronto Blue Jays on March 25 at the Rogers Centre.
This will be the second consecutive Opening Day start with the Athletics for Severino and the third of his career, solidifying himself as a key piece in the team’s rotation.
Severino comes to this new challenge after a 2025 season with some challenges, where he recorded an 8-11 record, an ERA of 4.54, and 124 strikeouts in 162.2 innings. However, he showed a solid end to the season after the All-Star Game, accumulating a 6-0 record with an ERA of 3.10 in that final stretch.
A notable aspect of his performance was his away performance, where he demonstrated greater dominance with an effectiveness of 3.02, compared to his difficulties at home.
Severino joins a distinguished group of Dominican pitchers who will start on Opening Day, including Freddy Peralta (Mets), José Soriano (Angels), and Sandy Alcántara (Marlins).
Furthermore, the right-hander solidified his veteran status after his participation with the Dominican Republic national team in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, where he was a reliable element in the pitching staff led by Albert Pujols.
With this designation, Severino takes on the challenge of leading from the mound at the start of the season, with the goal of guiding the Athletics towards a successful start in the 2026 campaign.
