MLB is making sure that fans can get to watch the game’s brightest stars on special holidays.
The league announced the 2023 calendar, and it’s full of surprises and innovative things.
For starters, teams won’t play 19 times against division rivals anymore: that number has been decreased to 13, in order to augment the number of interleague games.
It’s a good way to spice things up with old rivalries and matchups between budding powerhouses.
The intraleague games (games against other foes in the same league, but not in the same division) were decreased from 66 to 64.
Now, each team will play 46 interleague games in 2023, up from 20.
That’s a noticeable increase.
All things considered, every squad will play at least once against each of the remaining 29 teams in the league.
We will get to enjoy matchups we rarely see, or haven’t happened in years.
One of the most interesting things about the schedule, however, is MLB’s effort to offer lots of games on special holidays.
Every Team Will Take The Field On Special Holidays, Opening Day, And Game 162
Every team will play on Opening Day, slated for March 30, and also on Game 162, scheduled for October 1.
The 30 MLB clubs will also take the field on holidays, so people relaxing at home can watch their local (or national) network and get to choose which game to watch.
“Every team in 2023 is also scheduled to play on Jackie Robinson Day, Roberto Clemente Day and July 4th,” MLB insider Bob Nightengale tweeted on Wednesday afternoon.
Every team in 2023 is also scheduled to play on Jackie Robinson Day, Roberto Clemente Day and July 4th https://t.co/GGK3heSxrN
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) August 24, 2022
One thing is clear: the 2023 schedule was planned more thoroughly than the 2022 one, because there wasn’t a single deadline or game reduction threat applying pressure to one of the parties.
Now that baseball’s calendar will get back to normal next year, it’s time for some changes.
