Major League Baseball is back.
After a months-long drama series that pitted owners vs. players in nasty public negotiations over money, the MLB season is getting finally underway, and it's underway with a big matchup.
A World Series hopeful vs. a World Series champ is as good a way as any to kick off the 2020 MLB season, and there might be no better pitching matchup to ring in an MLB season than Max Scherzer vs. Gerrit Cole.
Scherzer and the defending world champion Nationals will take the field one championship ring heavier but one championship player lighter, as third baseman and postseason star Anthony Rendon is now paired with Mike Trout in Los Angeles. After a miraculous run to the Commissioner's Trophy in 2020, the Nats kick off the 2020 season by defending home turn in the nation's capital.
Cole takes the field as a much, much wealthier man after signing one of the richest deals in MLB history to join the Bombers this offseason, ending a short but incredibly impressive two-year stint with the Astros. Cole strengthens the Yankees' rotation, and he was a much-needed addition after the later revelation that Luis Severino would be out for the season with Tommy John surgery.
Here is a complete guide to watching Thursday's game between the Yankees and Nationals, including the start time and TV schedule for MLB Opening Night.
POWER RANKINGS: Dodgers, Yankees a tight 1-2 to start 2020 season
What channel is Yankees vs. Nationals on today?
- TV channel: ESPN
- Live stream: MLB.tv
Kicking off the MLB season is a great pitching matchup between Gerrit Cole and Max Scherzer. The World Series champion Nationals are set to defend home turf at Nationals Park in D.C.
In the opposite dugout, Cole dons the Yankee pinstripes for the first time — at least as an official member of the team — after inking a nine-year, $324 million pact this offseason to become the New York ace.
Yankees vs. Nationals start time
- Date: July 23, 2020
- First pitch: 7:08 p.m. ET
First pitch for the 2020 MLB, Yankees and Nationals season is scheduled for 7:08 p.m. ET. ESPN will be televising both Yankees vs. Nationals and Dodgers vs. Giants.
MLB schedule 2020
Baseball starved fans will have the opportunity to take in a host of nationally televised games over the first weekend of the sport's return. Here are the nationally televised out-of-market games through Sunday, July 26:
(All times Eastern.)
Thursday, July 23
Two games kick off the 2020 MLB season.
| Game | Start time | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Yankees vs. Nationals | 7:08 p.m. | ESPN |
| Giants vs. Dodgers | 10:08 p.m. | ESPN |
Friday, July 24
| Game | Start time | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Braves vs. Mets | 4:00 p.m. | ESPN |
| Tigers vs. Reds | 6:00 p.m. | MLB Network |
| Brewers vs. Cubs | 7:00 p.m. | ESPN |
| Mariners vs. Astros | 9:00 p.m. | MLB Network |
| Angels vs. A's | 10:00 p.m. | ESPN |
Saturday, July 25
| Game | Start time | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Brewers vs. Cubs | 1:00 p.m. | Fox |
| Pirates vs. Cardinals | 2:00 p.m. | MLB Network |
| Giants vs. Dodgers | 4:00 p.m. | Fox |
| Yankees vs. Nationals | 7:00 p.m. | Fox |
| Diamondbacks vs. Padres | 9:00 p.m. | FS1 |
Sunday, July 26
| Game | Start time | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Yankees vs. Nationals | 1:00 p.m. | TBS |
| Angels vs. A’s | 4:00 p.m. | MLB Network |
| Braves vs. Mets | 7:00 p.m. | ESPN |
| Giants vs. Dodgers | 10:00 p.m. | ESPN |
