MLB on Wednesday released the complete 2019 schedule for all 30 teams. Let's dig in with some key takeaways:
The regular season will open on March 20-21 with the Japan Series at the Tokyo Dome. The Mariners and Athletics will be the combatants. Traditional Opening Day will take place on March 28, which makes it the earliest traditional Opening Day in MLB history. For the second straight year, all 30 teams will be in action, which makes it a true Opening Day. Here are those Opening Day matchup (start times to be determined):
- Astros at Rays
- Angels at Athletics
- Red Sox at Mariners
- Cubs at Rangers
- Indians at Twins
- White Sox at Royals
- Tigers at Blue Jays
- Orioles at Yankees
- Diamondbacks at Dodgers
- Rockies at Marlins
- Giants at Padres
- Pirates at Reds
- Cardinals at Brewers
- Braves at Phillies
- Mets at Nationals
Yep, that's some March baseball in Minnesota. Now for some other highlights from the 2019 schedule:
- Interleague play will pair the AL East vs. NL West, AL Central vs. NL East, and AL West vs. NL Central. That's in addition to the usual interleague rivalry matchups (e.g., Yankees-Mets, White Sox-Cubs, etc.).
- World Series rematches include Yankees-Diamondbacks, Royals-Mets, Rangers-Cardinals and Red Sox-Rockies.
- Monterrey, Mexico will host one spring training series and two regular-season series for a total of six games. The Rockies and Diamondbacks will play during the Cactus League season on March 9-10, the Reds will play the Cardinals a two-game regular season set on April 13-14, and the Angels and Astros will play a two-game series on May 4-5.
- Just three games will take place on June 3, which is the day of the 2019 MLB Draft.
- On June 13 -- two days before the start of the 2019 College World Series -- the Royals will host the Tigers at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha. It'll be the first MLB game ever to be played in the state of Nebraska.
- The Angels will visit the Cardinals at Busch Stadium starting on June 21. That will occasion Albert Pujols' return to St. Louis for the first time as a visiting player. Pujols signed a 10-year, $254 million contracts with the Angels following the 2011 season.
- On June 29-30, the Red Sox and Yankees will play at London Stadium. Those will be the first-ever MLB games played in Europe.
- The 90th All-Star Game will go down on Tuesday, July 9th at Progressive Field in Cleveland.
- The third annual Little League Classic is scheduled for Aug. 18. The Pirates will host the Cubs in Williamsport, Penn.
- Sept. 29 will be the final day of the regular season. The schedule features 12 intra-divisional contests. As well, the Rangers will host the Yankees in the final regular season game at Globe Life Park in Arlington.
We've of course got a lot of 2018 left -- including, you know, the postseason -- but this should whet the baseball enthusiast's appetite for next year.
