Category: Sports News

Key dates for 2026 MLB season schedule: Opening Day, All-Star Game and more originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The 2025 MLB season is still far from finished, but the league is already offering a look at what’s to come in 2026.

MLB released its 2026 regular season schedule on Tuesday, with several notable events scattered across the calendar.

From special occasions to All-Star festivities and the end of the season, here are the key dates to know on the 2026 MLB schedule:

March 26: Opening Day

The earliest scheduled traditional Opening Day in MLB history is set for Wednesday, March 26.

The New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants will technically kick things off the night before, with the first game of 2026 on March 26 at Oracle Park. But Opening Day is set for the following day, when the other 28 teams take the field for the first time.

April 15: Jackie Robinson Day

All 30 teams will be in action wearing No. 42 for Jackie Robinson Day on Wednesday, April 15.

The Los Angeles Dodgers, as is tradition, will be at home for this game — this time hosting the New York Mets.

May 15-17: Rivalry Weekend

Rivalry Weekend returns in 2026 with a slate of games from May 15-17.

MLB again opted for regional matchups rather than typical rivalries, including Yankees-Mets, Cubs-White Sox, Royal-Cardinals, Rangers-Astros, Orioles-Nationals and Dodgers-Angels.

June 2: Lou Gehrig Day

Lou Gehrig Day, held annually on June 2, marks the day Gehrig became the starting first baseman for the Yankees — the beginning of his streak of 2,130 consecutive games played.

Next year will be the sixth annual Lou Gehrig Day, which raises awareness for ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

July 14: All-Star Game in Philadelphia

The Midsummer Classic is rolling into Philadelphia for the United States’ 250th anniversary. Philly was the nation’s first capital back in 1776.

The 2026 MLB All-Star Game will be played on Tuesday, July 14, at Citizen’s Bank Park, the first time the stadium will host the event. The Home Run Derby is scheduled for Monday, July 13.

Sept. 11: Mets vs. Yankees for 25th Anniversary of 9/11

In honor of the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in New York City, the Yankees will host the Mets for a series from Sept. 11-13.

Sept. 15: Roberto Clemente Day

Every September, Roberto Clemente Day is celebrated across MLB.

Next year, Clemente’s Pittsburgh Pirates will host the Milwaukee Brewers for the occasion, which honors the legacy of the Hall of Famer who died in a plane crash on New Year’s Eve 1972.

Sept. 27: Last day of regular season

The 2026 regular season will wrap up on Sunday, Sept. 27, with all 30 teams in action.

There are several notable matchups, including the Boston Red Sox hosting the Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park and the Dodgers visiting the rival Giants.

Taking a look at the highlights of the Phillies' 2026 schedule originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

MLB has officially released the schedule for the 2026 season. (Time to start planning accordingly to get to as many games as possible, right?)

Let’s take a look at a few stand-out moments:

•The Phillies will open their season with a six-game homestand against the Rangers and Nationals.

•There will be three west coast road trips in April (Rockies, Giants), May (Padres, Dodgers) and August into September (Mariners, Angels, Diamondbacks).

•Philadelphia is the host city for the 2026 All-Star game, taking place on July 14.

•Their longest homestands and road trips for the season are nine games. The highlight stretch comes right out of the All-Star break with the club hosting the Mets, Dodgers and Yankees.

•There are 26 division games post All-Star break.

You can see the full schedule below:

Credit: Philadelphia Phillies

David Stearns placed a huge emphasis on the Mets' drafting and development when he took over as the president of baseball operations. And before the team was viewed as a serious contender, Stearns was smartly reluctant to part with any of New York's most valued prospects via trade.

The result, a few years into Stearns' tenure, is that the Mets' farm system is now viewed as one of the very best in baseball.

And on ESPN's new top 30 list, the Mets' system is ranked No. 1.

Huge credit should also go to former GM Billy Eppler and Co., who helped assemble this system.

After being ranked No. 9 before the season, New York made the jump to the top of the list due in part to the amount of potentially high-impact prospects who are close to the majors.

Writes ESPN's Kiley McDaniel:

At this time next year, I'd expect six of New York's top eight prospects, if not more, to have either graduated or be up in the big leagues to stay, so this ranking won't last very long, but that's also because the Mets will have a roster teeming with useful big leaguers: the whole reason this list exists.

Of the prospects McDaniel is alluding to above,Nolan McLean is about to make his third big league start, while fellow right-handers Brandon Sproat and Jonah Tong(both currently with Triple-A Syracuse) could debut before the season is over.

On the position player side, infielder/outfielder Jett Williams and outfielder Carson Benge were recently promoted to Syracuse.

The expectation is that Williams and Benge will both debut during the 2026 season.

In addition to the aforementioned players, SNY's Mets' top 30 prospects list is full of intriguing names. That includes power-hitting first baseman Ryan Clifford, teenage shortstop Elian Peña, third baseman Jacob Reimer, outfielder A.J. Ewing, and left-handed pitcher Jonathan Santucci.

The Mets continue a three-game series against the Phillies at Citi Field on Tuesday at 7:10 p.m. on SNY.

Here's what to know about the game and how to watch...

Mets Notes

• Mark Vientosis slashing .387/.429/1.000 with five homers, four doubles, and 13 RBI in 35 plate appearances over his last eight games
• Jeff McNeil is hitting .300/.352/.488 this month with three homers and six doubles
• Cedric Mullinshas picked things up in a big way after struggling at the plate during his first week as a Met. In 14 games since Aug. 9, Mullins is slashing .306/.375/.490 with a homer, triple, and four doubles

What channel is SNY?

Check your TV or streaming provider's website or channel finder to find your local listings.

How can I stream the game?

The new way to stream SNY games is via the MLB App or MLB.tv. Streaming on the SNY App has been discontinued.

In order to stream games in SNY’s regional territory, you will need to have SNY as part of your TV package (cable or streaming), or you can now purchase an in-market SNY subscription package. Both ways will allow fans to watch the Mets on their computer, tablet or mobile phone. 

How can I watch the game on my computer via MLB? 

To get started on your computer, click here and then follow these steps: 

• Log in using your provider credentials. If you are unsure of your provider credentials, please contact your provider. 

• Link your provider credentials with a new or existing MLB.com account. 

• Log in using your MLB.com credentials to watch Mets games on SNY. 

• Select the SNY Mets game you wish to view from the Multimedia Center. 

How can I watch the game on the MLB App? 

MLB App access is included for FREE with SNY. To access SNY on your favorite supported Apple or Android mobile device, please follow the steps below.  

• Download the free MLB App.

• Open “MLB” and tap on “Subscriber Login” for Apple Devices or “Sign in with MLB.com” for Android Devices. 

• Type in your MLB.com credentials and tap “Log In.”  

• To access live or on-demand content, tap on the "Watch" tab from the bottom navigation bar. Select the "Games" sub-tab to see a listing of available games. You can scroll to previous dates using the left and right arrows. Tap on a game to select from the game feeds available.  

For more information on how to stream Mets games on SNY, please click here.

Here's what happened in Mets Land on Monday, in case you missed it...

• Faced with an early 3-0 deficit, the Mets responded by scoring 13 unanswered runs during Monday's win over the Phillies at Citi Field
• Can the Mets return to playing at a high level? Monday's victory showed a glimpse
• Francisco Alvarezcould begin a rehab assignment on Wednesday or Thursday
• Jose Siriis set to start a rehab assignment with St. Lucie
• Mark Vientos stayed hot, delivering two more clutch hits
• Kodai Sengais still searching for consistency
• With Senga not expected to pitch on four-days rest on Saturday, it's possible the Mets turn to Brandon Sproat or Jonah Tong to make that start
• Reed Garrettwas placed on the IL due to right elbow inflammation
• WATCH:Carlos Mendoza discusses the Mets' success with runners in scoring position

Athletics' release 2026 MLB season schedule, will play six games in Las Vegas originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Athletics officially will relocate to Las Vegas for regular-season games in 2026.

Temporarily.

MLB released its 2026 season schedule on Tuesday, and the A’s are slated to play six games against the Milwaukee Brewers and Colorado Rockies from June 8-14 at their Triple-A ballpark in Summerlin, Nevada next season.

The Green and Gold will begin the 2026 season against the Toronto Blue Jays on March 26 at Rogers Centre.

Here is the A’s full 2026 schedule:

The A’s will wrap up the season at home with two series against the Los Angeles Angels (Sept. 22-23) and Houston Astros (Sept. 24-27) at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento.

Giants' 2026 MLB season schedule features rare home opener vs. Yankees originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants will begin their 2026 MLB season with one of the year’s most interesting series, and in a twist, they’ll do it at Oracle Park. 

MLB released the 2026 schedule on Tuesday, revealing that the Giants will open at home against the New York Yankees next March 25 with a night game that’ll be the first game of the MLB season. It’ll be just their second opening day at Oracle Park since 2009.

The matchup won’t thrill the organization’s business side. Opening weekend usually sells very well no matter what, so the Yankees visit won’t provide the same boost that it would in the middle of the season. 

But it’s a nice change of pace for a fan base that has grown accustomed to having to wait an extra week to see the Giants in person. It’ll also be an easier week for the players, who get to stay home at the start of the year and also have two early days off since they’re kicking off the season on a Wednesday. 

The Giants traditionally have preferred to open on the road so they can finish at home, but next year they’ll do both. Their final three games will be at home against the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Here are some other highlights from the 2026 schedule … 

Very Rare Home Opener

It actually hasn’t been that long since the Giants opened at Oracle Park, although that wasn’t by design. They originally were supposed to begin the 2022 season at Petco Park, but the lockout led to games being pulled off the schedule and they began that season at home on April 8 against the Miami Marlins.

This will be their first planned Opening Day at Oracle Park since 2009, when the Milwaukee Brewers visited. Tim Lincecum started that game and Randy Winn — who now runs the Giants farm system — was the leadoff hitter. Winn, Bengie Molina and Aaron Roward all homered in a 10-6 win. 

The Giants opened at Yankee Stadium in 2023, which was some cheeky scheduling after years of rumors that Aaron Judge might return to his hometown team. Instead, he homered against the Giants. 

Aside from Judge returning to the Bay Area and the whole Yankees thing, there should be plenty of storylines. Carlos Rodón almost certainly will pitch at Oracle Park for the first time since his one season in San Francisco. There’s also an outside chance the Giants host Gerrit Cole’s return to the big leagues, although the ace has said that he expects a 14-month recovery after having Tommy John surgery on March 11. It also should be Camilo Doval’s return to Oracle Park.

Homecoming for Bryce?

If top prospect Bryce Eldridge doesn’t debut this September, there’s a very strong chance he does it next March 25 against the Yankees. How’s that for a memorable first big league game?

Something would have to go wrong for Eldridge to not be the starting first baseman or DH by the middle of next April, which means he should get a nice stretch to play in front of family members and friends. The Giants visit the Baltimore Orioles on April 10 and the Washington Nationals the next weekend. In between, there are three games against the Cincinnati Reds. 

It’s an odd trip, since the Cincinnati part will keep them from simply driving from Baltimore to the nation’s capital, but it should provide six early games back home for Eldridge, who grew up in Vienna, Virginia. He went to high school about half an hour from Nationals Park and grew up cheering for Bryce Harper and the Nats. Camden Yards is a little over an hour away from his hometown. 

Rafi’s Return

What kind of reception will Rafael Devers get in his return to Fenway Park? He’ll find out on August 21 when the Giants visit Boston for a weekend series. Devers has 92 career homers in 519 career games at Fenway Park. 

It also could be a #RevengeSeries for former Giants top prospect Kyle Harrison. He has been in Triple-A since the stunning trade but should be part of Boston’s pitching plans next season. 

Division Rivals

The Giants went 3-10 against the San Diego Padres this year. They’ll get an early look at them next season, visiting Petco Park (and its new banana pudding) right after the season-opening series against the Yankees. (In another oddity, they’ll then return home for the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, so they face both New York teams in the season’s first 13 games). 

This season, the Giants had to wait until June 13 to see the Dodgers, which just felt wrong. They’ll host them next April and visit Dodger Stadium in the middle of May. The Giants also will spend deadline day in San Diego, which is convenient for beat writers who fear being on a long flight without Wi-Fi that time of year. 

Happy Flights

The staff hasn’t been thrilled with some of the travel the last couple of years, but next season looks relatively easy on players, at least on paper. The Baltimore-Cincinnati-Washington D.C. trip would be a lot simpler if the Nationals and Orioles were back-to-back, but the other three-city trips at least make geographic sense. 

There’s a 10-game trip in May, but it’s Los Angeles, Sacramento and then Phoenix. The only other three-city trip is Colorado, Milwaukee, Chicago, and the Giants can take buses between the latter two cities there. 

They also finish the first half at home against the Rockies and then begin the second half in Seattle. That’s a hell of a lot easier than getting everyone to Toronto after the break, which they did this year. 

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