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MLB Opening Day: Ranking the 15 matchups from best to worst

By Kevin Henry

DENVER, CO - APRIL 1: Justin Turner #10 of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks on the field during the second inning against the Colorado Rockies on Opening Day at Coors Field on April 1, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - APRIL 1: Justin Turner #10 of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks on the field during the second inning against the Colorado Rockies on Opening Day at Coors Field on April 1, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /
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MLB, Minor Leagues
PHOENIX, ARIZONA – MARCH 26: General view outside of Chase Field on March 26, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Arizona Diamondbacks and the Atlanta Braves were scheduled to play a Major League Baseball opening day game tonight, which was postponed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Major League Baseball’s Opening Day is nearly upon us, and it will look much different than the previous two years when COVID-19 restrictions limited attendance. This season, MLB Opening Day is expected to not only be played in full stadiums, but also in front of fans who are thankful to get back to the game and see the strife caused by the recent lockout in the rearview mirror.

With the revised schedule in place after the lockout, Opening Day will be spread over two days, with nine matchups of teams taking the field for the first time on Thursday and six matchups marking the remaining team debuts on Friday.

We looked at all of the MLB Opening Day matchups and ranked them from the best (most interesting) to the worst (least interesting)

As a note, divisional matchups make up 10 of the 15 Opening Day matchups (seven on Thursday and three on Friday).

We start our list with the three least attractive Opening Day matchups.

Number 15: Baltimore Orioles at Tampa Bay Rays (Friday)

It’s a battle of what is expected to be, in Baltimore, the worst team in the American League East (and one that starts our initial power rankings near the bottom) against one of the teams expected to contend for the division title and more in 2022 (Tampa Bay). And, let’s face it, Tropicana Field isn’t even a stadium the Rays even want to be playing in, so that doesn’t help in the excitement building up to the matchup.

Number 14: Cleveland Guardians at Kansas City Royals (Thursday)

In Kansas City, it’s mostly about the future instead of the present, so Royals games will become much more interesting to watch when their full group of exciting prospects arrive on the scene. It is the regular-season debut for the Guardians name and the first for José Ramírez with his new contract extension, but that’s about as exciting as it gets on the Cleveland side.

Number 13: San Diego Padres at Arizona Diamondbacks (Thursday)

On the plus side, it’s a matchup in the National League West. On the minus side, not much is expected of Arizona this season while the Padres are missing Fernando Tatis Jr. because of an offseason injury and are still trying to see exactly what the lineup could look like in 2022. It’s very possible that the Opening Day lineup for San Diego will change dramatically as the season goes along, depending on what the team does with trade candidates Eric Hosmer and Wil Myers.

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