NEW YORK (Interstat) — On a crisp Friday evening that marked the return of baseball to the Bronx, Aaron Judge provided an immediate and familiar jolt of electricity. His first-inning, two-run homer erased an early Miami lead and propelled the New York Yankees to an 8-2 victory over the Marlins in their home opener at Yankee Stadium.

A sellout crowd of 48,788 watched the Yankees improve to 6-1, matching their start from two seasons prior, while the Marlins fell to 5-2.

The game’s pivotal sequence unfolded in the opening frame. Miami’s Xavier Edwards stunned the home crowd by launching a solo home run off Yankees starter Will Warren with one out in the top of the first. The lead was short-lived. In the bottom half, Yankees leadoff man Trent Grisham worked a walk from Miami’s Eury Pérez. Judge then stepped in and, on a 1-1 slider, drove the ball deep into the left-field seats, a two-run shot that instantly shifted momentum and gave New York a lead it would not relinquish.

Judge, who finished with three RBIs, continued his early-season power surge. Three of his five hits this year have been home runs, and the first-inning blast was a reminder of his record 20 first-inning homers from the previous season.

The Yankees broke the game open with patience in a messy second inning. Pérez and the Marlins’ command vanished, issuing three walks and a hit-by-pitch. With the bases loaded, Grisham drew another walk to force in a run, and Judge was hit by a pitch to bring home another, stretching the lead to 4-1. Miami pitchers combined to issue 11 walks in the game, a critical factor in their defeat.

Miami’s only other offense came in the fifth when Owen Caissie homered to right-center off Warren, cutting the deficit to 4-2. Warren, however, was otherwise excellent in earning his first win of the season. The right-hander worked six innings, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out six. He navigated traffic effectively, stranding two Marlins in the sixth after back-to-back singles.

The Yankees’ bullpen, a strength early this season, sealed the win with three perfect innings. Jake Bird struck out two in the seventh, Brent Headrick struck out two in the eighth, and Ryan Yarbrough closed it out in the ninth. Marlins reliever Tyler Phillips provided two scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts, but the early hole was too deep.

New York added insurance late. Ben Rice led off the seventh with a solo homer to right field off Miami’s Calvin Faucher. Then in the eighth, after a challenged call overturned an out and resulted in a Judge single, Rice delivered the final blow. His two-run double to center off Anthony Maldonado scored Judge and Cody Bellinger, capping the scoring at 8-2.

The victory defied the pregame projection from Interstat’s game simulator, which had forecast a 7-5 Marlins win, though the Yankees’ 64% ELO probability and status as 1.5-run favorites proved more accurate. The combined 10 runs went under the posted over/under of 8.

For Miami, the loss halted a four-game winning streak that included a series sweep of the Chicago White Sox. The Yankees have now won six of seven to open the season, with their only loss coming in Seattle earlier in the week.

The two teams continue their three-game series Saturday afternoon in New York.