The 2026 season has arrived, starting with a 7-0<\/a> blowout victory for the New York Yankees<\/a> over the San Francisco Giants<\/a> on Wednesday night and continuing with season openers for the rest of MLB on Thursday and Friday. Whether it’s ace showdowns, powerhouse matchups or new faces in new places you want to see, there is something for everyone.<\/p>\n What are we looking for as the season gets started? Here’s our takeaway from the Yankees-Giants opener and a pregame look at what you need to know for the remaining games (including each team’s initial 2026 Power Ranking<\/a> and final offseason grade<\/a>). We’ll also post lineups as they are announced and live updates throughout, followed by takeaways after every final pitch.<\/p>\n Jump to: Live updates<\/a> | Lineups<\/a> | Takeaways<\/a> | Friday games<\/a><\/p>\n Live updates<\/p>\n First pitch: 4:10 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Garrett Crochet<\/a> vs. Andrew Abbott<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Red Sox<\/p>\n Power ranking: 9 | Offseason grade: A<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Alex Bregman has gone to the North Side of Chicago, but it was still a productive winter in Boston. The Red Sox bolstered their rotation by signing Ranger Suarez<\/a> and trading for Sonny Gray<\/a> and Johan Oviedo<\/a> and revamped their infield in deals for Willson Contreras<\/a> and Caleb Durbin<\/a>.<\/p>\n What to know about the Reds<\/p>\n Power ranking: 18 | Offseason grade: C-<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: There was a lot of talk about Kyle Schwarber<\/a> joining his hometown Reds this offseason — but when Schwarber opted for a Philly return, Cincy pivoted to third baseman Eugenio Suarez<\/a>, who hit 49 home runs between Arizona and Seattle last season.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n Red Sox Reds First pitch: 4:10 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Jose Soriano<\/a> vs. Hunter Brown<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Angels<\/p>\n Power ranking: 27 | Offseason grade: D<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Acquired in their trade for Taylor Ward<\/a>, former top prospect Grayson Rodriguez<\/a> is the boom-or-bust name to know in an offseason full of pitching moves for the Angels.<\/p>\n What to know about the Astros<\/p>\n Power ranking: 13 | Offseason grade: C<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: You won’t see them on Opening Day with Brown the no-doubt ace of Houston’s staff, but Japanese star Tatsuya Imai<\/a> and former Pirates right-hander Mike Burrows<\/a> were brought in to solidify the rest of the Astros rotation.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n Angels Astros First pitch: 4:10 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Tarik Skubal<\/a> vs. Nick Pivetta<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Tigers<\/p>\n Power ranking: 8 | Offseason grade: A<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Tarik Skubal’s future with the team — and arbitration case — dominated the headlines, but Detroit also had a strong offseason headlined by the signing of Framber Valdez<\/a>, who will slot in behind Skubal in the rotation this season.<\/p>\n Ranking baseball’s top 100 players We rank and make predictions for the best players in baseball right now. MLB Rank 2026 \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Padres<\/p>\n Power ranking: 16 | Offseason grade: C-<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: It was an uncharacteristically quiet offseason for AJ Preller with the departures (Dylan Cease<\/a>, Luis Arraez) more notable than any arrivals (Miguel Andujar<\/a>, Nick Castellanos<\/a>) to San Diego’s roster.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n Tigers Padres First pitch: 4:15 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Nathan Eovaldi<\/a> vs. Cristopher Sanchez<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Rangers<\/p>\n Power ranking: 14 | Offseason grade: C+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Marcus Semien, one of the stars of Texas’ 2023 championship team, is now a New York Met in a one-for-one swap for Brandon Nimmo. But the Rangers’ offseason will ultimately be judged by how strikeout artist MacKenzie Gore performs after being acquired from the Nationals.<\/p>\n What to know about the Phillies<\/p>\n Power ranking: 5 | Offseason grade: B-<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: The most important thing for Phillies fans is what didn’t change since we saw the Phillies last with Kyle Schwarber’s return highlighting the winter. Meanwhile, Brad Keller<\/a> joined the bullpen coming off a breakout season with the Cubs last year.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n Rangers<\/p>\n Brandon Nimmo<\/a> (L) RF Phillies First pitch: 4:15 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Drew Rasmussen<\/a> vs. Matthew Liberatore<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Rays<\/p>\n Power ranking: 21 | Offseason grade: B<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: This winter’s edition of the Rays’ seemingly annual tradition of trading veterans sent Brandon Lowe to Pittsburgh and Shane Baz<\/a> to Baltimore. The lineup will have some new faces in Jacob Melton<\/a>, Cedric Mullins<\/a> and Gavin Lux<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n Rays Cardinals What to know about the Cardinals<\/p>\n Power ranking: 26 | Offseason grade: B+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: The Cardinals’ rebuild hit high gear this offseason as the front office traded Sonny Gray, Brendan Donovan<\/a>, Willson Contreras<\/a> and Nolan Arenado<\/a>. St. Louis fans will get a glimpse at the future when top prospect JJ Wetherholt<\/a> makes his debut on Opening Day.<\/p>\n First pitch: 8:30 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Zac Gallen<\/a> vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the D-backs<\/p>\n Power ranking: 19 | Offseason grade: C+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: After an offseason of Ketel Marte<\/a> trade rumors, the Diamondbacks opted to keep their All-Star second baseman and also re-signed Opening Day starter Gallen. Though he is not the superstar he was earlier in his career, Nolan Arenado is the big-name addition here and Arizona also reunited with right-hander Merrill Kelly<\/a>, a key member of the 2023 NL champion team.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n D-backs Dodgers What to know about the Dodgers<\/p>\n Power ranking: 1 | Offseason grade: A<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Since we last saw the Dodgers celebrating their Game 7 World Series win, all they’ve done is go out and fill their two biggest holes (left field and closer) in the grandest fashion possible by signing Kyle Tucker and Edwin Diaz.<\/p>\n First pitch: 10:10 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Tanner Bibee vs. Logan Gilbert<\/p>\n What to know about the Guardians<\/p>\n Power ranking: 20 | Offseason grade: D+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: N\/A. Coming off a surprising AL Central title run, it was a very quiet winter in Cleveland.<\/p>\n What to know about the Mariners<\/p>\n Power ranking: 2 | Offseason grade: A-<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: After their 2026 ended one win shy of the first World Series appearance in franchise history, the Mariners made a late-offseason splash when they traded for versatile infielder Brendan Donovan.<\/p>\n Lineups<\/p>\n Guardians Mariners It’s become something close to a legal obligation to assess the Yankees’ offseason by using the words run it back. But lost in the implied criticism of the team’s offseason, which included no splashy additions, is this: The guys they’re running it back with are pretty good.<\/p>\n In the first game of the 2026 season, a stand-alone spectacle at Oracle Park that was long on pomp and short on suspense, Max Fried<\/a> cruised through 6\u2153 innings, allowing just two hits and one runner past first base, as the Yankees beat the Giants and made rookie manager Tony Vitello’s debut<\/a> one he’ll probably want to forget.<\/p>\n Vitello became the first person to go directly from college head coach to big league manager, and Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey made the out-of-the-box decision in part to inject the former Tennessee head coach’s unique brand of energy and intensity into a team that has hovered around .500 for the past four seasons. But a pitcher like Fried can sap the energy of even the most rabid group, and with him on the mound, the Yankees’ five-run second inning made the outcome all but inevitable. — Tim Keown<\/p>\n First pitch: 7:07 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Luis Severino<\/a> vs. Kevin Gausman<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Athletics<\/p>\n Power ranking: 23 | Offseason grade: D<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: It wasn’t the splashiest offseason for the Athletics, but their biggest move was adding veteran Jeff McNeil<\/a> to their already-promising lineup in a trade with the Mets.<\/p>\n What to know about the Blue Jays<\/p>\n Power ranking: 4 | Offseason grade: B+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: The Blue Jays showed they’re serious about getting back to the World Series after their crushing Game 7 loss to the Dodgers when they lavished top free agent starter Dylan Cease with a seven-year, $210 million deal.<\/p>\n First pitch: 7:15 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Kyle Freeland<\/a> vs. Sandy Alcantara<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Rockies<\/p>\n Power ranking: 30 | Offseason grade: C-<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: It’s a whole new ballgame for the Rockies, who turned their baseball operations department over to former Cleveland Browns<\/a> (yes, you read that right<\/a>) exec Paul DePodesta.<\/p>\n What to know about the Marlins<\/p>\n Power ranking: 25 | Offseason grade: C+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Acquired in an offseason trade with the Cubs for starter Edward Cabrera, Owen Caissie<\/a> is an outfielder with the kind of offensive upside the Marlins have been craving.<\/p>\n First pitch: 7:15 p.m. ET | Pitching matchup: Cole Ragans<\/a> vs. Chris Sale<\/a><\/p>\n What to know about the Royals<\/p>\n Power ranking: 15 | Offseason grade: C<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: You won’t see it until they head to K.C. for their home opener, but the Royals’ most notable offseason change came when they decided to move the fences in at Kauffman Stadium<\/a>.<\/p>\n Top MLB prospects for 2026 Where do stars of tomorrow land as we rank baseball’s best young players?<\/p>\n Top 100 prospects \u00bb<\/a> | 101-200 \u00bb<\/a> What to know about the Braves<\/p>\n Power ranking: 10 | Offseason grade: B+<\/p>\n Biggest change since we saw them last: Mike Yastrzemski<\/a> was originally signed as a fourth outfielder in a busy offseason for the Braves, but his role became even more important when Jurickson Profar<\/a> was suspended for the entire 2026 season after his second positive PED test<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mar 26, 2026, 04:00 PM ET Happy MLB Opening Day! The 2026 season has arrived, starting with a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":562792,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[435],"tags":[49,48,462,82],"class_list":["post-562791","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-mlb","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/562791","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=562791"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/562791\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/562792"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=562791"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=562791"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=562791"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/greyline.png\")
<\/p>\nThursday games<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774556470_356_bos.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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Roman Anthony<\/a> (L) LF
Trevor Story<\/a> (R) SS
Jarren Duran<\/a> (L) DH
Willson Contreras<\/a> (R) 1B
Caleb Durbin<\/a> (R) 3B
Wilyer Abreu<\/a> (L) RF
Isiah Kiner-Falefa<\/a> (R) 2B
Carlos Narvaez<\/a> (R) C
Ceddanne Rafaela<\/a> (R) CF<\/p>\n
TJ Friedl<\/a> (L) CF
Matt McLain<\/a> (R) 2B
Elly De La Cruz<\/a> (S) SS
Sal Stewart<\/a> (R) 1B
Eugenio Suarez<\/a> (R) DH
Spencer Steer<\/a> (R) LF
Tyler Stephenson<\/a> (R) C
Noelvi Marte<\/a> (R) RF
Ke’Bryan Hayes<\/a> (R) 3B<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/laa.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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Zach Neto<\/a> (R) SS
Mike Trout<\/a> (R) CF
Nolan Schanuel<\/a> (L) 1B
Jorge Soler<\/a> (R) DH
Yoan Moncada<\/a> (S) 3B
Jo Adell<\/a> (R) RF
Josh Lowe<\/a> (L) LF
Logan O’Hoppe<\/a> (R) C
Oswald Peraza<\/a> (R) 2B<\/p>\n
Jose Altuve<\/a> (R) 2B
Yordan Alvarez<\/a> (L) DH
Isaac Paredes<\/a> (R) 3B
Carlos Correa<\/a> (R) SS
Joey Loperfido<\/a> (L) LF
Cam Smith<\/a> (R) RF
Christian Walker<\/a> (R) 1B
Yainer Diaz<\/a> (R) C
Jake Meyers<\/a> (R) CF<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774556471_698_det.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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Kerry Carpenter<\/a> (L) RF
Gleyber Torres<\/a> (R) 2B
Colt Keith<\/a> (L) DH
Riley Greene<\/a> (L) LF
Spencer Torkelson<\/a> (R) 1B
Kevin McGonigle<\/a> (L) 3B
Dillon Dingler<\/a> (R) C
Parker Meadows<\/a> (L) CF
Javier Baez<\/a> (R) SS<\/p>\n
Fernando Tatis Jr<\/a>. (R) RF
Xander Bogaerts<\/a> (R) SS
Manny Machado<\/a> (R) 3B
Jackson Merrill<\/a> (L) CF
Miguel Andujar<\/a> (R) DH
Gavin Sheets<\/a> (L) 1B
Ramon Laureano<\/a> (R) LF
Freddy Fermin<\/a> (R) C
Jake Cronenworth<\/a> (L) 2B<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774556473_354_tex.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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Wyatt Langford<\/a> (R) CF
Corey Seager<\/a> (L) SS
Jake Burger<\/a> (R) 1B
Andrew McCutchen<\/a> (R) DH
Josh Jung<\/a> (R) 3B
Josh Smith<\/a> (L) 2B
Danny Jansen<\/a> (R) C
Sam Haggerty<\/a> (S) LF<\/p>\n
Trea Turner<\/a> (R) SS
Kyle Schwarber<\/a> (L) DH
Bryce Harper<\/a> (L) 1B
Alec Bohm<\/a> (R) 3B
Bryson Stott<\/a> (L) 2B
Adolis Garcia<\/a> (R) RF
Brandon Marsh<\/a> (L) LF
J.T. Realmuto<\/a> (R) C
Justin Crawford<\/a> (L) CF<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/tb.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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Yandy Diaz<\/a> (D) DH
Ryan Vilade<\/a> (D) LF
Jonathan Aranda<\/a> (Z) 1B
Junior Caminero<\/a> (D) 3B
Ben Williamson<\/a> (D) 2B
Jonny DeLuca<\/a> (D) RF
Nick Fortes<\/a> (D) C
Cedric Mullins<\/a> (Z) CF
Carson Williams<\/a> (D) SS<\/p>\n
JJ Wetherholt<\/a> (L) 2B
Ivan Herrera<\/a> (R) DH
Alec Burleson<\/a> (L) 1B
Masyn Winn<\/a> (R) SS
Nolan Gorman<\/a> (L) 3B
Jordan Walker<\/a> (R) RF
Nathan Church<\/a> (L) LF
Pedro Pages<\/a> (R) C
Victor Scott II<\/a> (L) CF<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774556475_812_ari.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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Ketel Marte<\/a> (S) 2B
Corbin Carroll<\/a> (L) RF
Geraldo Perdomo<\/a> (S) SS
Gabriel Moreno<\/a> (R) C
Pavin Smith<\/a> (L) DH
Nolan Arenado<\/a> (R) 3B
Carlos Santana<\/a> (S) 1B
Alek Thomas<\/a> (L) CF
Jordan Lawlar<\/a> (R) LF<\/p>\n
Shohei Ohtani<\/a> (L) DH
Kyle Tucker<\/a> (L) RF
Mookie Betts<\/a> (R) SS
Freddie Freeman<\/a> (L) 1B
Will Smith<\/a> (R) C
Max Muncy<\/a> (L) 3B
Teoscar Hernandez<\/a> (R) LF
Andy Pages<\/a> (R) CF
Miguel Rojas<\/a> (R) 2B<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/cle.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774556476_55_sea.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
<\/p>\n
TBD<\/p>\n
Brendan Donovan<\/a> (L) 3B
Cal Raleigh<\/a> (S) C
Julio Rodriguez<\/a> (R) CF
Josh Naylor<\/a> (L) 1B
Randy Arozarena<\/a> (R) LF
Luke Raley<\/a> (L) RF
Dominic Canzone<\/a> (L) DH
Cole Young<\/a> (L) 2B
Leo Rivas<\/a> (S) SS<\/p>\nTakeaways from completed games<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774556476_556_nyy.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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<\/p>\nFriday games<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ath.png&h=60&w=60.png\")
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<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/mlb_kiley_mcdaniel_top_100_prospects_cr_16x9_608x342.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Ranking all 30 MLB farm systems \u00bb<\/a>
Top 10 prospect lists for all 30 teams \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n