MIAMI (AP) — Hyped as the most appealing starting pitchers’ matchup of opening day, Paul Skenes outlasted Sandy Alcántara but neither was involved in the decision of the Miami Marlins’ 5-4 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday.
Pittsburgh’s Skenes is the reigning NL Rookie of the Year. Alcántara, the veteran Marlins right-hander who won the NL Cy Young Award in 2022, missed last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Skenes struck out seven over 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball. The 22-year-old right-hander had a 4-1 lead but was lifted after issuing consecutive walks to Xavier Edwards and Kyle Stowers in the sixth.
“I got a little sloppy there at the end,” Skenes said. “I had to execute a little quicker in that sixth inning. Not getting into those 3-2 counts and that’s probably a different story at the end.”
Alcántara’s outing ended after he allowed a two-run single to Bryan Reynolds in the fifth that put the Pirates ahead 2-1. Alcántara gave up two runs, two hits, struck out seven and walked four.
He kept Pittsburgh hitless until Ke’Bryan Hayes’ two-out single in the fifth. Alcántara then walked Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Tommy Pham.
“We know I didn’t do my best job out there,” Alcántara said. “I was trying to give it my best but if you take away the walks from the fifth, the results would have been better.”
Even after his sluggish end, Skenes was in line for the victory in the first opening day start of his career. But Pirates relievers Colin Holderman and David Bednar allowed three runs over the final two innings that gave Miami the walkoff win.
“It’s early and there are always adjustments to be made,” Skenes said. “We’ll do that. It was a cool environment. A lot of energy in the building.”
Skenes acknowledged the matchup against Alcántara.
“He’s a really good pitcher but at the end of the day I have to go out there and pitch my game,” Skenes said.
Alcántara had not pitched since Sept. 3, 2023. He immediately proved he was ready in the at-bat against Pham to start the game. The seven-year veteran threw only fastballs that ranged between 98.1 and 99.6 mph to strike Pham out.
“I had a lot of emotion out there. I was close to crying but I’m hard to cry,” Alcántara said. “Finally, I’m back in a big league mound. Grateful to God that I returned to my mound here in Miami to compete.”
Despite his absence, Alcántara wants to quickly regain the form that made one of the sport’s workhorses. Alcántara, who reached 200 innings in 2021 and 2022 and had thrown 184 before the injury that ended his 2024 season, understands it will require a gradual progression of workload. He finished Thursday with 91 pitches.
When he was called up from the minors May 11, Skenes immediately lived up to the lofty expectations pinned on the first selection in the 2023 major league draft. Skenes won his first six decisions and finished 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA over 23 starts. He struck out a club rookie record 170 in 133 innings.
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Miami Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara throws during the first inning of an opening-day baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes (30) throws during first inning the of an opening-day baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Russia views efforts to end its three-year war with Ukraine as “a drawn-out process,” a Kremlin spokesman said Monday, after U.S. President Donald Trump expressed frustration with the two countries’ leaders as he tries to bring about a truce.
“We are working to implement some ideas in connection with the Ukrainian settlement. This work is ongoing,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a conference call with reporters.
“There is nothing concrete yet that we could and should announce. This is a drawn-out process because of the difficulty of its substance,” he said when asked about Trump’s anger at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s comments dismissing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s legitimacy to negotiate a deal.
Russia has effectively rejected a U.S. proposal for a full and immediate 30-day halt in the fighting. The feasibility of a partial ceasefire on the Black Sea, used by both countries to transport shipments of grain and other cargo, was cast into doubt after Kremlin negotiators imposed far-reaching conditions.
Trump promised during last year’s U.S. election campaign that he would bring Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II to a swift conclusion.
Peskov didn’t directly address Trump’s criticism of Putin on Sunday when he said he was “angry, pissed off” that Putin had questioned Zelenskyy’s credibility as leader.
But he said that Putin “remains absolutely open to contacts” with the U.S. president and was ready to speak to Trump.
Both countries are preparing for a spring-summer campaign on the battlefield, analysts and Ukrainian and Western officials say.
Zelenskyy said late Sunday that there has been no let-up in Russia’s attacks as it drives on with its invasion of its neighbor that began in February 2022. He said the attacks demonstrated Russia’s unwillingness to forge a settlement.
“The geography and brutality of Russian strikes, not just occasionally, but literally every day and night, show that Putin couldn’t care less about diplomacy,” Zelenskyy said in his daily address.
“And almost every day, in response to this proposal, there are Russian drones, bombs, artillery shelling, and ballistic strikes,” he said.
He urged further international pressure on Moscow to compel Russia to negotiate, including new sanctions.
Trump said he would consider adding further sanctions on Russia, which already faces steep financial penalties, and using tariffs to undermine its oil exports.
Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, came under another Russian drone attack overnight, injuring three people, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry said Monday.
Russia also fired two ballistic missiles and 131 Shahed and decoy drones, the Ukrainian air force said.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said air defenses shot down 66 Ukrainian drones early Monday over three Russian regions.
“The continuing attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces on Russia’s energy facilities show the complete lack of respect for any obligations related to the settlement of the conflict in Ukraine by the Kyiv regime,” the ministry said in a statement.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
In this photo taken from video distributed by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Sunday, March 30, 2025, a Russian Army 2S5 howitzer Giatsint-S fires towards Ukrainian positions in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
A Ukrainian military boat CB90 of Military Naval Forces patrols Black Sea coast line of Odesa region, Ukraine, on March 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
In this photo taken from video distributed by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Sunday, March 30, 2025, a Russian Army 2S5 howitzer Giatsint-S fires towards Ukrainian positions in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
