Congratulations, you’ve made it. The baseball off-season is over and we’re heading full steam ahead into Opening Day on Thursday.
In just a few short hours, pitchers across the 30 MLB teams will take to the mound, with fresh optimism and renewed hope that this could be *their* year.
There have been plenty of changes – all of which we’ll discuss here – and there is perhaps more excitement among fans than ever before.
Here, DailyMail.com will take you through everything you need to know ahead of Opening Day, including where to watch, what all the big games are, who’s pitching for each team, and some of the best bets…
DailyMail.com will take you through everything you need to know ahead of Opening Day
First of all, the fixtures and where to watch…
Atlanta Braves @ Washington Nationals – 1:05pm EST (Bally SE, MASN, MLB Network)
San Francisco Giants @ New York Yankees – 1:05pm EST (NBCS Bay Area, YES, MLBN)
Baltimore Orioles @ Boston Red Sox – 2:10pm EST (MASN2, NESN)
Milwaukee Brewers @ Chicago Cubs – 2:20pm EST (Bally Wisconsin, MARQ)
Detroit Tigers @ Tampa Bay Rays – 3:10pm EST (Bally Detroit, Bally Sun, MLBTV)
Philadelphia Phillies @ Texas Rangers – 4:05pm EST (Bally New Orleans, Bally Oklahoma, Bally Southeast, Bally Southwest Xtra, ESPN+)
Pittsburgh Pirates @ Cincinnati Reds – 4:10pm EST (ATTSN Pittsburgh, Bally Ohio)
Colorado Rockies @ San Diego Padres – 4:10pm EST (ATTSN Rocky Mountains, Bally San Diego)
Toronto Blue Jays @ St Louis Cardinals – 4:10pm EST (Sportsnet, Bally Mid West)
Minnesota Twins @ Kansas City Royals – 4:10pm EST (Bally Kansas City, Bally North)
New York Mets @ Miami Marlins – 4:10pm EST (SNY, MLB Network, Bally Florida)
Chicago White Sox @ Houston Astros – 7:08pm EST (ESPN, TSN4, TVA Sports)
Los Angeles Angels @ Oakland Raiders – 10:07pm EST (Bally West, NBCSCA, MLBN)
Arizona Diamondbacks @ Los Angeles Dodgers – 10:10pm EST (Bally Arizona, SNLA)
Cleveland Guardians @ Seattle Mariners – 10:10pm EST (Bally Great Lakes, Root Sports, MLB Network)
The New York Yankees will open the 2023 season against the San Francisco Giants in the Bronx
Who’s pitching?
Max Fried vs Patrick Corbin: Atlanta Braves @ Washington Nationals – 1:05pm EST
Logan Webb vs Gerrit Cole: San Francisco Giants @ New York Yankees – 1:05pm EST
Kyle Gibson vs Corey Kluber: Baltimore Orioles @ Boston Red Sox – 2:10pm EST
Corbin Burnes vs Marcus Stroman: Milwaukee Brewers @ Chicago Cubs – 2:20pm EST
Eduardo Rodriguez vs Shane McClanahan: Detroit Tigers @ Tampa Bay Rays – 3:10pm EST
Aaron Nola vs Jacob deGrom: Philadelphia Phillies @ Texas Rangers – 4:05pm EST
Mitch Keller vs Hunter Greene: Pittsburgh Pirates @ Cincinnati Reds – 4:10pm EST
German Marquez vs Blake Snell: Colorado Rockies @ San Diego Padres – 4:10pm
Alek Manoah vs Miles Mikolas: Toronto Blue Jays @ St Louis Cardinals – 4:10pm EST
Pablo Lopez vs Zack Greinke: Minnesota Twins @ Kansas City Royals – 4:10pm EST
Max Scherzer vs Sandy Alcantara: New York Mets @ Miami Marlins – 4:10pm EST
Dylan Cease vs Framber Valdez: Chicago White Sox @ Houston Astros – 7:08pm EST
Shohei Ohtani vs Kyle Muller: Los Angeles Angels @ Oakland Raiders – 10:07pm EST
Zac Gallen vs Julio Urias: Arizona Diamondbacks @ Los Angeles Dodgers – 10:10pm EST
Shane Bieber vs Luis Castillo: Cleveland Guardians @ Seattle Mariners – 10:10pm EST
Max Scherzer is set to face Sandy Alcantara in a pitching matchup for the Mets first game
Games to watch out for
LA Angels’ unicorn Shohei Ohtani
Fresh off leading Japan to the WBC crown from the mound against his LA Angels teammate Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani will be hoping to replicate his form – this time on the same team as Trout.
Tipped as an early favorite to steal the American League MVP title from the Yankees’ star slugger Aaron Judge, the Angels pitcher/designated hitter is somewhat of a unicorn.
All eyes will be on the right-hander’s wicked pitch as he makes his second consecutive Opening Day start in a bid to beat the As.
Houston, do we have lift off again?
The Astros have been the American League’s dominant force since completing their controversial rebuild midway through the 2010s, most recently blowing away the Yankees in an ALCS clean sweep.
This year it’s more of the same, despite losing No. 1 starter Justin Verlander in free agency to the Mets.
All eyes will be on the reigning champions as they look to begin their World Series defense against the Chicago White Sox.
Fresh of a WBC victory with Japan, the LA Angels unicorn Shohei Ohtani is early MVP favorite
Can Aaron Judge continue bombing it in the Bronx?
AL MVP Aaron Judge had a 2022 to remember, breaking Rodger Maris’s home run record with 62 in the regular season.
The Yankees star slugger was rewarded with a new $360million nine-year deal to stay in the Bronx and the captaincy of the only franchise he ever really wanted to play for.
Judge and the Bronx Bombers will face an interesting Opening Day matchup as they face the San Francisco Giants – the very team that came close to stealing him away in free agency during the offseason.
The six-foot-seven star will be hoping to prove a point against his former admirers, but can he get Aaron Boone’s team off to the perfect start as they look to go one step further this season?
Mets’ mega-money moves set to pay off
New York Mets owner Steve Cohen has splashed the cash big time throughout the winner, adding the likes of Justin Verlander, Brandon Nimmo and Kodai Senga.
However, they lost Edwin Diaz indefinitely after the star relief pitcher picked up a freak knee injury at the WBC. Undeniably, the Mets’ chances of bringing a title home for the first time since 1986 have been slimmed due to Diaz’s long-term absence but the Mets still have plenty of stars on their roster.
It will be interesting to see if the Mets’ big-money investments payoff and the team Cohen has carefully constructed can come together to deliver the franchise a proper shot at the World Series.
Aaron Judge will look to replicate his historic 2022 season that saw him break the HR record
What are the rule changes?
Well, there’s been plenty… here’s a quick (ish) rundown of exactly what’s changed for the start of the 2023 season.
PITCH CLOCK: The pitch clock aims to speed the pace of play by eliminating down time between pitches. Players will have 30 seconds to resume play between batters. Between pitches, pitchers have 15 seconds with nobody on and 20 seconds if there is a baserunner. The pitcher must start his delivery before the clock expires. After a pitch, the clock starts again when the pitcher has the ball back, the catcher and batter are in the circle around home plate, and play is otherwise ready to resume.
LIMITS ON PITCHER DISENGAGEMENTS: Pitchers may only disengage from the pitching rubber – either to call timeout or to attempt a pickoff throw – twice per plate appearance. After a pitcher has used his two disengagements, he can still attempt a pickoff, but it better be successful. If the baserunner gets back safely, a balk is assessed and the runner advances. If a runner advances during a plate appearance, the limit on disengagements is reset. Mound visits, injury timeouts and offensive team timeouts are not considered disengagements.
A pitch timer was added to improve speed & reduce dead time in games this upcoming season
INFIELD SHIFT LIMITS: The infield shift – putting three or more infielders on one side of second base, usually with one positioned in the outfield – has been a popular trend over the past decade, and many believe it has contributed to plummeting batting averages. The new rule states that all four infielders must have both feet within the outer boundary of the infield and two infielders must be on each side of second base when a pitch is delivered.
BIGGER BASES: New larger bases have been introduced to improve player safety and to modestly encourage more stolen-base attempts. The bases are now 18-square inches, up from 15-square inches. Home plate is now three inches closer to first and third base, while the corner bases are now 4 1/2 inches closer to second base.
Best bets from around the league
Orioles at Red Sox to be highest scoring opening game: +650 at DraftKings
Twins to be highest scoring team on opening day: +1300 at DraftKings
Aaron Judge to repeat as MLB home run leader: +550 favorite at BetMGM
Shohei Ohtani to win AL MVP: +200 favorite at SI Sportsbook
***
Read more at DailyMail.co.uk