Best Opening Day moments in A's history

OAKLAND -- Opening Day has brought plenty of memorable moments for the A’s over the years. Many of those have materialized at the Coliseum, most when Matt Olson completed a rare feat with his walk-off grand slam against the Angels last season.

Here’s a look at the top five Opening Day moments in Oakland history:

1. Olson walks it off with a slam
July 24, 2020
A walk to Khris Davis loaded the bases with one out in the 10th inning of the first extra-inning showdown under the new automatic runner rule of the 2020 season. With Matt Olson coming up, Angels manager Joe Maddon countered by bringing in Hoby Milner to face the left-handed-hitting first baseman. That strategy backfired, as Olson unloaded on a first-pitch slider for a grand slam as the A’s walked it off with a 7-3 victory on Opening Day at the Coliseum.

Olson’s feat marked the first time a player hit a walk-off grand slam on Opening Day since Jim Presley of the Mariners in 1986.

2. Gray snaps the streak
April 6, 2015
The club's streak of 10 straight Opening Day losses was stopped by Sonny Gray, who took a no-hitter into the eighth inning in an 8-0 victory over the Rangers at the Coliseum. Gray tossed eight scoreless innings, blemished only by a walk, a hit batter and a single by Ryan Rua.

3. Boog shines in first Opening Day start
March 29, 2018
Drawing his first Opening Day start as the center fielder for the A’s, Boog Powell found himself in the spotlight right away. Against the Angels, Powell sparked the 11th inning with a one-out triple that set up Marcus Semien to walk it off with an RBI single for a 6-5 win at the Coliseum.

4. Durazo drives in all five runs
April 1, 2003
New acquisition Erubiel Durazo introduced himself to Oakland by hitting a two-run homer off Seattle's Freddy Garcia in his first at-bat. He added a three-run double in the fifth inning, accounting for all of the game's runs. Meanwhile, Tim Hudson tossed eight shutdown innings as the A's beat the Mariners, 5-0, at the Coliseum.

5. Ichiro’s farewell
March 20, 2019
Playing a two-game series against the Mariners in Japan to begin the 2019 season, the A’s found themselves in an emotional scene at the Tokyo Dome as fans packed the stadium for Seattle’s Ichiro Suzuki, who was playing in the final two games of his career. Though the A’s lost both games, this series will be remembered for the memorable ovation Ichiro received in his home country.