Rivalry games—a staple of spring-training matches for out-of-market fans—will take on a new look in 2025, as schedules are impacted by franchise shifts and the whims of Major League Baseball.
With the emergence of interleague play, spring-training rivalry games have decreased somewhat in media importance. But for those spring-training fans living in Arizona and Florida who will never make the trek to San Francisco or New York or Philadelphia or Boston, rivalry games can still be a hot draw.
The biggest changes center on the Athletics, the former Oakland A’s who will play the 2025 season in Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park. (Yes, the team will go by the one-word name, a la Beyonce or Cher.) As is usual in the Cactus League, the teams will play a pair of games in spring training, with the Giants visiting the Athletics at Mesa’s Hohokam Stadium on Feb. 25 and the A’s visiting the Giants at Scottsdale Stadium on March 11. The teams will not play three preseason matches before the season begins, however. Still, the Giants will play a pair of exhibition tuneups at Oracle Park, hosting the Detroit Tigers on March 24 and March 25.
One spring-training rivalry returning to normal involves a pair of games between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. Yes, it seems that every Bombers/BoSox game is nationally televised during the regular season, but both teams are still solid spring draws. The Red Sox will host the Yankees at JetBlue Park on Feb. 24, while the Yankees will host the Red Sox at Steinbrenner Field on March 18.
One rivalry game will return to the schedule. Despite both training in Florida, the New York Yankees and New York Mets have avoided spring-training play for several years. This year sees the New York Yankees travel to Clover Park, the Port St. Lucie home of the New York Mets, for an afternoon March 24 exhibition game.
Some rivalry games remain on the schedules. Despite beginning the 2025 season in Tokyo, the Los Angeles Dodgers will still take on the Los Angeles Angels in the traditional Freeway Series before the stateside season opens. The Dodgers will host the March 23 game at Dodger Stadium, while the Angels will host the March 24 and March 25 games at Angel Stadium. Because of a curtailed spring schedule thanks to the Tokyo trip, the Dodgers will play rival San Francisco Giants only once next spring: March 1 at Camelback Ranch-Glendale.
And, of course, other solid intrastate rivalries remain on the schedules. The Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates will match up four times: Feb. 24 at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, March 7 at LECOM Park in Bradenton and March 18 at LECOM Park, as well as a March 14 Spring Breakout Game at BayCare Ballpark. The Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds share Goodyear Ballpark and will play twice: Feb. 22 and March 17, a St. Patrick’s Day night game that traditionally packs the ballpark. And despite losing dates to the aforementioned Tokyo opening, the Chicago Cubs will play the Chicago White Sox twice in 2025: Feb. 22 at Mesa’s Sloan Park and March 7 at Camelback Ranch-Glendale.
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