List of Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day starting pitchers

The Milwaukee Brewers are a Major League Baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. They play in the National League Central division. Established in Seattle, Washington, as the Seattle Pilots in 1969,[2] the team became the Milwaukee Brewers after relocating to Milwaukee in 1970.[3] The first game of the new baseball season for a team is played on Opening Day, and being named the Opening Day starting pitcher is an honor which is given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season,[4] though there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day.[5] The Brewers have used 32 different Opening Day starting pitchers in their 52 seasons.[6]

Ben Sheets made six Opening Day starts for the Brewers, a franchise record.
Marty Pattin was the starting pitcher for the Pilots' inaugural April 8, 1969, opener.
Jim Colborn, the Brewers' 1973 Opening Day starter, was selected for that season's All-Star Game.[1]
Jim Slaton made three Opening Day starts for the Brewers, including back-to-back starts in 1975 and 1976.
Teddy Higuera, won each of his three consecutive Opening Day starts from 1986 to 1988.
Yovani Gallardo made five consecutive Opening Day starts from 2010 to 2014, more than any other Brewer.
Kyle Lohse was the Brewers' 2015 Opening Day starter.
Wily Peralta was the Brewers' 2016 Opening Day starter.
Brandon Woodruff was the Brewers' 2020 Opening Day starter.

The Pilots, whose home ballpark was Sick's Stadium,[7] played their inaugural Opening Day game on the road against the California Angels at Anaheim Stadium in Anaheim, California, on April 8, 1969. Marty Pattin was their starting pitcher that day; he earned the win in a game the Pilots won, 4–3.[8] In 1970, the team relocated to Wisconsin and began playing their home games at Milwaukee County Stadium.[9] The Brewers opened their first season in Milwaukee at home with Opening Day starter Lew Krausse Jr. taking the loss in a 12–0 defeat by the California Angels on April 9.[10] County Stadium was home to the Brewers for 31 seasons through 2000.[9] Their final Opening Day game at the facility occurred on April 26, 1995. Starter Ricky Bones took a no decision in the Brewers' 12–3 win over the Chicago White Sox.[11] Steve Woodard received an unusual no decision in 2000, when the team's Opening Day game against the Cincinnati Reds was called in the sixth inning due to rain, with the score tied at 3.[12] The team moved into American Family Field, then known as Miller Park, in 2001,[9] but they did not play their first Opening Day game at the new stadium until five years later. In that game, held on April 3, 2006, Milwaukee defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5–2; starter Doug Davis did not figure in the decision.[13]

The Brewers' 32 Opening Day starting pitchers have a combined Opening Day record of 17 wins, 16 losses, and 19 no decisions in 52 Opening Day starts. They earned a win in their only Opening Day start in Seattle. In Milwaukee, they have 16 wins, 16 losses, and 19 no decisions in 51 Opening Day starts. At Milwaukee County Stadium, they had a record of 3 wins, 2 losses, and 5 no decisions in 10 Opening Days. At American Family Field, they have a record of 3 wins, 4 losses, and 3 no decisions in 10 Opening Days. The Brewers have an aggregate record of 6 wins, 6 losses, and 8 no decisions in 20 Opening Day starts played at home. Milwaukee's starters have a record of 11 wins, 10 losses, and 11 no decisions in 32 Opening Day starts on the road.[6]

Ben Sheets has the most Opening Day starts for the Brewers, with six, followed by Yovani Gallardo (5); Teddy Higuera and Jim Slaton (3); and Ricky Bones, Mike Caldwell, Jim Colborn, Cal Eldred, Marty Pattin, Don Sutton, and Bill Wegman (2). Gallardo (2010–2014) made five consecutive Opening Day starts. Sheets (2002–2005) made four consecutive starts, while Higuera (1986–1988) made three and Bones (1995–1996), Colborn (1973–1974), Sheets (2007–2008), Slaton (1975–1976), Sutton (1983–1984), and Wegman (1992–1993) made back-to-back starts.[6]

Opening Day results
Table key
Season Each year is linked to an article about that particular Brewers season.
Pitcher (#) Number indicates multiple appearances as a Brewers Opening Day starter
Score (#) Game score with Brewers runs listed first; number of innings in a game that was shorter or longer than 9 innings in parentheses
Location Stadium in italics denotes a Brewers home game
W Win
L Loss
ND (W) No decision by starting pitcher; Brewers won game
ND (L) No decision by starting pitcher; Brewers lost game
* Advanced to the postseason
** Won the American League Championship Series
Pitchers
Season Pitcher Decision Score Opponent Location Ref.
1969 Marty Pattin W 4–3 California Angels Anaheim Stadium [8]
1970 Lew Krausse Jr. L 0–12 California Angels Milwaukee County Stadium [10]
1971 Marty Pattin (2) W 7–2 Minnesota Twins Metropolitan Stadium [14]
1972 Bill Parsons W 5–1 Cleveland Indians Cleveland Stadium [15]
1973 Jim Colborn L 0–10 Baltimore Orioles Memorial Stadium [16]
1974 Jim Colborn (2) ND (L) 8–9 Boston Red Sox Milwaukee County Stadium [17]
1975 Jim Slaton L 2–5 Boston Red Sox Fenway Park [18]
1976 Jim Slaton (2) W 5–0 New York Yankees Milwaukee County Stadium [19]
1977 Bill Travers L 0–3 New York Yankees Yankee Stadium [20]
1978 Jerry Augustine W 11–3 Baltimore Orioles Milwaukee County Stadium [21]
1979 Mike Caldwell W 5–1 New York Yankees Yankee Stadium [22]
1980 Jim Slaton (3) ND (W) 9–5 Boston Red Sox Milwaukee County Stadium [23]
1981* Mike Caldwell (2) W 5–3 Cleveland Indians Cleveland Stadium [24]
1982** Pete Vuckovich W 15–4 Toronto Blue Jays Exhibition Stadium [25]
1983 Don Sutton L 2–3 California Angels Anaheim Stadium [26]
1984 Don Sutton (2) ND (L) 5–6 Oakland Athletics Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum [27]
1985 Moose Haas L 2–4 Chicago White Sox Milwaukee County Stadium [28]
1986 Teddy Higuera W 5–3 Chicago White Sox Comiskey Park [29]
1987 Teddy Higuera (2) W 5–1 Boston Red Sox Milwaukee County Stadium [30]
1988 Teddy Higuera (3) W 12–0 Baltimore Orioles Memorial Stadium [31]
1989 Don August L 1–2 Cleveland Indians Cleveland Stadium [32]
1990 Chris Bosio ND (L) 1–2 Chicago White Sox Comiskey Park [33]
1991 Mark Knudson W 5–4 Texas Rangers Arlington Stadium [34]
1992 Bill Wegman ND (L) 2–4 Minnesota Twins Milwaukee County Stadium [35]
1993 Bill Wegman (2) L 1–3 California Angels Anaheim Stadium [36]
1994 Cal Eldred ND (W) 11–7 Oakland Athletics Milwaukee County Stadium [37]
1995 Ricky Bones ND (W) 12–3 Chicago White Sox Milwaukee County Stadium [11]
1996 Ricky Bones (2) ND (W) 15–9 California Angels Anaheim Stadium [38]
1997 Ben McDonald L 2–6 Texas Rangers The Ballpark in Arlington [39]
1998 Cal Eldred (2) ND (L) 1–2 Atlanta Braves Turner Field [40]
1999 Rafael Roque ND (W) 10–8 St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium [41]
2000 Steve Woodard ND (Tie) 3–3 (6) Cincinnati Reds Cinergy Field [12]
2001 Jamey Wright L 0–1 Los Angeles Dodgers Dodger Stadium [42]
2002 Ben Sheets W 9–3 Houston Astros Astros Field [43]
2003 Ben Sheets (2) ND (L) 9–11 St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium [44]
2004 Ben Sheets (3) ND (W) 8–6 St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium [45]
2005 Ben Sheets (4) W 9–2 Pittsburgh Pirates PNC Park [46]
2006 Doug Davis ND (W) 5–2 Pittsburgh Pirates Miller Park [13]
2007 Ben Sheets (5) W 7–1 Los Angeles Dodgers Miller Park [47]
2008* Ben Sheets (6) ND (W) 4–3 (10) Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field [48]
2009 Jeff Suppan L 6–10 San Francisco Giants AT&T Park [49]
2010 Yovani Gallardo L 3–5 Colorado Rockies Miller Park [50]
2011* Yovani Gallardo (2) ND (L) 6–7 Cincinnati Reds Great American Ball Park [51]
2012 Yovani Gallardo (3) L 5–11 St. Louis Cardinals Miller Park [52]
2013 Yovani Gallardo (4) ND (W) 5–4 (10) Colorado Rockies Miller Park [53]
2014 Yovani Gallardo (5) W 2–0 Atlanta Braves Miller Park [54]
2015 Kyle Lohse L 0–10 Colorado Rockies Miller Park [55]
2016 Wily Peralta L 3–12 San Francisco Giants Miller Park [56]
2017 Junior Guerra ND (L) 5–7 Colorado Rockies Miller Park [57]
2018* Chase Anderson ND (W) 2–1 (12) San Diego Padres Petco Park [58]
2019* Jhoulys Chacín W 5–4 St. Louis Cardinals Miller Park [59]
2020* Brandon Woodruff L 0–3 Chicago Cubs Wrigley Field [60]

Pitchers

Opening Day starting pitchers are listed in descending order by the number of Opening Day starts for the Brewers.

Pitcher Starts Wins Losses No decisions Win % Season(s)
Ben Sheets 6 3 0 3 1.000 2002,[43] 2003,[44] 2004,[45] 2005,[46] 2007,[47] 2008[48]
Yovani Gallardo 5 1 2 2 0.333 2010,[50] 2011,[51] 2012,[52] 2013,[53] 2014[54]
Teddy Higuera 3 3 0 0 1.000 1986,[29] 1987,[30] 1988[31]
Jim Slaton 3 1 1 1 0.500 1975,[18] 1976,[19] 1980[23]
Mike Caldwell 2 2 0 0 1.000 1979,[22] 1981[24]
Marty Pattin 2 2 0 0 1.000 1969,[8] 1971[14]
Ricky Bones 2 0 0 2 0.000 1995,[11] 1996[38]
Jim Colborn 2 0 1 1 0.000 1973,[16] 1974[17]
Cal Eldred 2 0 0 2 0.000 1994,[37] 1998[40]
Don Sutton 2 0 1 1 0.000 1983,[26] 1984[27]
Bill Wegman 2 0 1 1 0.000 1992,[35] 1993[36]
Jerry Augustine 1 1 0 0 1.000 1978[21]
Jhoulys Chacín 1 1 0 0 1.000 2019[59]
Mark Knudson 1 1 0 0 1.000 1991[34]
Bill Parsons 1 1 0 0 1.000 1972[15]
Pete Vuckovich 1 1 0 0 1.000 1982[25]
Chase Anderson 1 0 0 1 0.000 2018[58]
Don August 1 0 1 0 0.000 1989[32]
Chris Bosio 1 0 0 1 0.000 1990[33]
Doug Davis 1 0 0 1 0.000 2006[13]
Junior Guerra 1 0 0 1 0.000 2017[57]
Moose Haas 1 0 1 0 0.000 1985[28]
Lew Krausse Jr. 1 0 1 0 0.000 1970[10]
Kyle Lohse 1 0 1 0 0.000 2015[55]
Ben McDonald 1 0 1 0 0.000 1997[39]
Wily Peralta 1 0 1 0 0.000 2016[56]
Rafael Roque 1 0 0 1 0.000 1999[41]
Jeff Suppan 1 0 1 0 0.000 2009[49]
Bill Travers 1 0 1 0 0.000 1977[20]
Steve Woodard 1 0 0 1 0.000 2000[12]
Brandon Woodruff 1 0 1 0 0.000 2020[60]
Jamey Wright 1 0 1 0 0.000 2001[42]

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