NEW YORK (AP) — Austin Wells became the first catcher to hit a leadoff homer on opening day, Anthony Volpe also went deep and the New York Yankees began their AL pennant defense by beating the Milwaukee Brewers 4-2 on Thursday.
Carlos Rodón (1-0), starting because of ace Gerrit Cole's season-ending elbow injury, allowed one run and four hits in 5 2/3 innings. Rodón got 13 swing and misses, including nine on sliders.
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New York Yankees pitcher Devin Williams, right, and catcher Austin Wells celebrate after winning a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees pitcher Devin Williams reacts during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge hits an RBI double during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
A moment of silence is observed for Miller Gardner, son of former New York Yankees player Brett Gardner, before the start of an opening-day baseball game between the Yankees and the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Milwaukee Brewers' Néstor Cortes greets some New York Yankees players before the start of an opening-day baseball game at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Anthony Volpe watches his solo home run iin the second inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Anthony Volpe hits a solo home run during the second inning an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Austin Wells celebrates his solo home run during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Austin Wells, left, celebrates his solo home run with Aaron Judge during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodón reacts to an out during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Austin Wells celebrates his solo home run in the dugout during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Devin Williams, an All-Star closer acquired from Milwaukee in December, loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth on two hits and a walk. He gave up Brice Turang's sacrifice fly, then struck out Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich for the save.
Chourio fanned five times, two more than his previous high.
Wells put the Yankees ahead when he sent a 2-0 fastball into the right-field short porch against Freddy Peralta (0-1) — it would not have been out of any other big league ballpark.
Volpe homered in the second, Aaron Judge added an RBI double off third base in the seventh and Cody Bellinger followed with a sacrifice fly that made it 4-1 in his Yankees debut.
Vinny Capra hit his first big league homer in the third for Milwaukee.
New York's lineup included just four starters from World Series Game 5: Judge, Wells, Volpe and Jazz Chisholm Jr.
Cole appeared for pregame introductions, his right arm in a sling following Tommy John surgery on March 11.
A moment of silence was held for Miller Gardner, the 14-year-old son of former Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner, who died Friday.
Milwaukee wore a patch on the left sleeve honoring broadcaster Bob Uecker, who died Jan. 16 at age 90.
Brewers rookie Isaac Collins pinch hit with the bases loaded in the sixth and in a nine-pitch at-bat grounded into an inning-ending forceout against Tim Hill.
New York hadn’t had a catcher hit leadoff in 19,451 games — 19,014 in the regular season and 437 in the postseason — according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
LHP Max Fried makes his Yankees debut Saturday and Nestor Cortes his Brewers debut in his return to New York. Cortes dyed his hair blond on Wednesday.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
New York Yankees pitcher Devin Williams, right, and catcher Austin Wells celebrate after winning a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees pitcher Devin Williams reacts during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge hits an RBI double during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
A moment of silence is observed for Miller Gardner, son of former New York Yankees player Brett Gardner, before the start of an opening-day baseball game between the Yankees and the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Milwaukee Brewers' Néstor Cortes greets some New York Yankees players before the start of an opening-day baseball game at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Anthony Volpe watches his solo home run iin the second inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Anthony Volpe hits a solo home run during the second inning an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Austin Wells celebrates his solo home run during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Austin Wells, left, celebrates his solo home run with Aaron Judge during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodón reacts to an out during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees' Austin Wells celebrates his solo home run in the dugout during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
BRUSSELS (AP) — The U.K. and French foreign ministers on Friday accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of dragging his feet in ceasefire talks aimed at halting Moscow's all-out invasion of Ukraine and demanded a swift response from Russia after weeks of U.S. efforts to secure a truce.
A Russian drone attack late Thursday on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, killed five civilians and dramatized the diplomatic insistence on a ceasefire. Emergency crews carried black body bags from a burning apartment building as onlookers wept and hugged in the dark.
Some of the 32 wounded, bloodied and in shock, limped out into the street or were carried on stretchers as flames shot from the windows of their homes.
“Now, I think it is obvious who wants peace and who wants war,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said at a NATO meeting in Brussels, referring to the Kharkiv strike. “We must get Russia serious about peace. We must pressure Russia into peace.”
Russia has effectively rejected a U.S. proposal for a full and immediate 30-day halt in the fighting.
“Our judgment is that Putin continues to obfuscate, continues to drag his feet,” U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy told reporters at NATO headquarters, standing alongside French counterpart Jean-Noël Barrot in a symbolic show of unity.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Russia’s real intentions in the negotiations will become clear within weeks.
“We will know from their answers very soon whether they are serious about proceeding with real peace or whether it’s a delay tactic,” Rubio told reporters. “Now we’ve reached the stage where we need to make progress.”
A Kremlin envoy who visited Washington this week for talks with Trump administration officials said Friday that further meetings would be needed to resolve outstanding issues.
Kirill Dmitriev told Russian reporters that “the dialogue will take some time, but it’s proceeding positively and constructively.”
He criticized what he called a “well-coordinated media campaign and attempts by various politicians to spoil Russia-U.S. relations, distort what Russia says, and cast Russia and its leaders in a negative way.”
Dmitriev, the head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, was sanctioned by the Biden administration after Moscow launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. The U.S. had to temporarily lift the restrictions to allow him to travel to Washington this week.
Civilian areas in three other Ukrainian regions were also hit in Russian attacks overnight, officials said. The Ukrainian air force said that Russia fired 78 strike and decoy drones. Russia’s Defense Ministry said that its air defenses destroyed 107 Ukrainian drones.
"We see you, Vladimir Putin. We know what you are doing,” Lammy said.
Russian forces are preparing to launch a new military offensive in the coming weeks to maximize pressure on Ukraine, and strengthen the Kremlin’s negotiating position in the ceasefire talks, according to Ukrainian government and Western military analysts.
The planned multipronged ground offensive along the 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line comes as muddy fields dry out, which will allow tanks, armored vehicles and other heavy equipment to roll into key positions across the countryside.
The United Kingdom and France are helping to lead a multinational effort known as the “coalition of the willing” to set up a force that might police any future peace agreement in Ukraine. A senior Ukrainian official said earlier this week that between 10 and 12 countries have said they are ready to join the coalition.
Barrot said that Ukraine had accepted ceasefire terms three weeks ago, and that Russia now "owes an answer to the United States.”
U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed frustration with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after he promised last year to bring the war to a swift conclusion.
“Russia has been flip-flopping, continuing its strikes on energy infrastructure, continuing its war crimes,” Barrot said. “It has to be ‘yes.’ It has to be ‘no.’ It has to be a quick answer.”
He said that Russia shows no intention of halting its military campaign, noting that Putin on Monday ordered a call-up intended to draft 160,000 conscripts for a one-year tour of compulsory military service.
The two foreign ministers pledged to continue helping to build up Ukraine’s armed forces — the country’s best security guarantee since the U.S. took any prospect of NATO membership off the table.
Moscow’s measured approach to the ceasefire negotiations hasn't surprised Western observers, because its army has momentum on the battlefield.
A U.S. intelligence community annual threat assessment, published last month, noted that for Russia, “positive battlefield trends allow for some strategic patience.”
“Russia in the past year has seized the upper hand in … Ukraine and is on a path to accrue greater leverage to press Kyiv and its Western backers to negotiate an end to the war that grants Moscow concessions it seeks,” the report said.
Coalition army chiefs were due to meet in Kyiv on Friday. Defense ministers from the group will meet at NATO headquarters next Thursday.
Gen. Christopher Cavoli, the top U.S. general in Europe, said at a hearing before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington on Thursday that Russia is also rebuilding its military strength.
Russian forces on the front line in Ukraine now number more than 600,000 troops, he said. That is the highest number in the war and almost double the size of the initial invasion force, he said, and Russia is on track to replace all the tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and air defense systems it has lost so far.
In addition, Cavoli said, Russia is set to produce 250,000 artillery shells a month, allowing it to build a stockpile three times bigger than those of the U.S. and Europe combined.
Illia Novikov reported from Kyiv, Ukraine.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio boards to the plane after his trip in Brussels, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)
People mourn over the body of a victim following Russia's drone attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, late Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)
Rescuers carry the body of a killed resident following Russia's drone attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, late Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)
Firefighters put out a fire following Russia's drone attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, late Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)
A resident responds to a fire following Russia's drone attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, late Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)
Rescuers carry the body of a killed resident following Russia's drone attack in Kharkiv, Ukraine, late Thursday, April 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Yevhen Titov)
Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy, left, and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot arrive to address the media during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot addresses the media during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy addresses the media during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy, left, and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot address the media during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy, left, and French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot address the media during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
