MLB Releases 60-Game Schedule: Season Starts July 23
After seeing Opening Day, which was originally scheduled for March 26, washed away thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s been an extended waiting game between the owners and the MLBPA about trying to hammer out the details about money and the number of games, among other things. The two sides finally came to some sort of an agreement in late June with the league looking to get things underway later this month. The second spring training, which is being called Summer Camp and sponsored by Camping World, began last week.
One thing that we know for certain is what the schedule for this 60-game season will look like for all the teams this season.
Opening Day is scheduled to take place on July 23 with a pair of nationally televised games. The first game of the 2020 season is going to be a doozy as the defending champs, the Washington Nationals, will host the New York Yankees at 7 pm ET. It could mark the Yankee debut for flamethrower Gerrit Cole, who inked a hefty nine-year, $324 million deal in the offseason. He could well square off with Max Scherzer, who was 11-7 with a 2.92 ERA, a 1.027 WHIP, 33 walks and 243 strikeouts over 172.1 innings in 27 starts during the regular season. Scherzer was 3-0 with a 2.40 ERA, 15 walks and 37 strikeouts over 30 innings in six appearances, five starts, in the postseason. The Nationals beat Cole and the Astros in seven games to take their first championship in franchise history.
In the nightcap of the doubleheader on opening night, it’s a battle of NL West foes and bitter rivals as the San Francisco Giants, without former ace Madison Bumgarner, head to the City of Angels to take on Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. First pitch in that game is slated for 10:05 pm ET. Both of those contests are scheduled to be televised on ESPN.
On Friday, July 24, the league will see 14 games on the schedule as the Nationals and Yankees are off before completing their series over the weekend. The Friday slate will feature a tripleheader on ESPN as the Braves travel to face the Mets at 4:10 pm ET. That is followed by the Brewers and Cubs in a NL Central battle at Wrigley Field at 7:10 pm ET and the Angels heading to Oakland to face the A’s in an AL West battle at 10:10 pm ET. In addition, the Colorado Rockies will provide the competition for the Texas Rangers as they christen Globe Life Field.
In case you forgot or was unaware, the schedule is more geographically oriented than in previous years in order to avoid cross-country flights in an effort to avoid another flare-up of the COVID-19 pandemic. Teams play 10 games against their divisional opponents and four games against each of the five teams from the corresponding division in the other league. That means that the AL Central will square off with NL Central teams while the AL East battles the NL East and the AL West takes on the NL West.
There are some marquee games on the schedule and we’ll start touching on those as the week goes on. For now, we know how the schedule will play out to open the season. It gives fans something to look forward to and an idea of who they’ll be facing off with in the opening weekend of the season and beyond. The regular season is still slated to come to a close on Sunday, September 27, leaving limited off days in the schedule. Let’s hope that things pan out as everyone is planning at this stage of the game.