This story was excerpted from Tim Stebbins' Guardians Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
CLEVELAND -- The Guardians’ streak of opening the regular season on the road will continue next year.
MLB unveiled the 2026 schedule on Tuesday, and the Guardians will kick things off with an Opening Day showdown on March 26 in Seattle against the Mariners. It will mark the ninth consecutive full season that Cleveland will begin on the road, and the second time in four seasons that the club kicks off its campaign in Seattle (also in ‘23).
Cleveland opened the 2020 season at Progressive Field, but that was during the shortened 60-game campaign. You have to go all the way back to 2016 to find the last time the club played its season opener at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.
Of course, that 2016 opener was postponed one day, from April 4 to April 5, due to a mix of snow and rain. The weather in northeast Ohio is always a wild card in March and April.
Here are some additional highlights from the Guardians’ 2026 schedule.
1. Opening Day is part of the Guardians’ season-opening seven-game road trip. After a four-game series at the Mariners (March 26-29), the Guardians will visit the Dodgers for three games (March 30-April 1).
2. The Guardians’ home opener is scheduled for Friday, April 3, when they will welcome the Cubs to Progressive Field for three games. That series will mark the second time in franchise history that Cleveland will host a National League team for its home opener (also San Francisco in 2022). It’s part of a six-game homestand that includes a three-game series vs. the Royals (April 6-8).
3. That series vs. Kansas City is Cleveland’s only divisional matchup in March/April. The Guardians have three series against AL Central opponents in May: at the Royals (May 4-7), vs. the Twins (May 8-10) and at the Tigers (May 18-21).
4. The Guardians will host eight Interleague opponents next season: the Cubs, Reds (May 15-17), Nationals (May 25-27), Pirates (July 17-19), D-backs (July 31-Aug. 2), Mets (Aug. 4-6), Padres (Aug. 14-16) and Giants (Aug. 18-20).
5. If you’re looking to take a trip to check out a new ballpark, the Guardians have eight Interleague road series. They’ll visit the Dodgers on the opening trip, and also the Braves (April 10-12), Cardinals (April 13-15), Phillies (May 22-24), Brewers (June 16-18), Marlins (July 10-12), Reds (July 27-29) and Rockies (Aug. 21-23). The All-Star break also will directly follow the series in Miami.
6. The Guardians’ longest homestand is 10 games from June 26-July 5, against the Mariners, Rangers and White Sox. Their longest road trip is nine games from June 16-24, against the Brewers, Astros and White Sox.
7. The Guardians’ final homestand is a six-gamer from Sept. 14-20, against the White Sox and A’s. Cleveland will end the season with a six-game road trip against the Red Sox (Sept. 22-24) and Royals (Sept. 25-27).
You can find the full 2026 schedule here.