MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers still have a lot to accomplish in 2025, but it’s never too early to start making summer plans for 2026. Major League Baseball released next year’s schedules for all 30 teams this week, and there’s a lot to dig into for the Brewers. If you thought their current stretch of 19 games over 18 days was something, wait until you see what the second half has in store next year. Here are some of the things that stood out to me:
1) Open and close at home
You won’t have to correct your friends when they refer to the home opener as “Opening Day” next year! It will be a true Opening Day in Milwaukee, the Brewers’ first season opener at home since 2021. The Thursday, March 26 game against the White Sox -- scheduled first pitch TBD -- will mark the Brewers’ earliest Opening Day in franchise history, just ahead of this year’s March 27 opener at Yankee Stadium.
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And it will be the third time the Brewers and White Sox are Opening Day foes. They also began the season at Comiskey Park in 1986 and at County Stadium in 1995, both Brewers victories. Teddy Higuera outdueled Hall of Famer Tom Seaver in the ‘86 opener, and the Brewers rode John Jaha’s first-inning grand slam to a 12-3 rout in ‘95. The Brewers also finish the regular season at home, a big plus for the sportswriters and traveling secretaries out there who have postseason travel to consider. The Cardinals are the opponent for the final regular-season series at American Family Field from Sept. 25-27.
2) American League flashbacks
The White Sox are just the start of the early-season reminders of the Brewers’ AL roots. They will face American League foes in six of their first eight series, including each of the first four: The White Sox and Rays on the opening homestand, then the Royals and Red Sox on the first road trip. April also features the Twins at home and the Tigers on the road -- all before the Brewers play their 25th game of the season!
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3) Vegas, baby
The A’s new stadium in Las Vegas won’t open for a few more years, but they will play regular-season games from June 8-14 at Las Vegas Ballpark, home of the Las Vegas Aviators, the club’s Triple-A affiliate. The A’s will host the Brewers for three games (June 8-10), followed by three games against the Rockies (June 12-14). Las Vegas Ballpark, located in Downtown Summerlin, sits about 13 miles west of the site where construction is underway for the A’s new ballpark on the Las Vegas strip, which is scheduled for completion in time for the start of the 2028 season. It won’t be the first time the A’s play regular-season games in Southern Nevada. In 1996, the A’s played their first six home games at Cashman Field in Las Vegas due to renovations that were taking place at the Oakland Coliseum. |
4) Road warriors
OK, now to the hard part of the Brewers’ 2026 slate. The longest road trip of the season is a three-city trip to play the Diamondbacks (July 3-5), Cardinals (July 6-9) and Pirates (July 10-12) leading into the All-Star break. Coming out of the break, the Brewers have their longest homestand -- nine games against the Marlins, Mets and Rockies. That starts a grueling stretch. The Brewers are scheduled to play 51 games in the first 55 days coming out of the All-Star break, including two weeklong West Coast trips that are part of 17 games in 17 days from July 31-Aug. 16. That 17-day stretch alone starts in Anaheim against the Angels, takes the Brewers home to play the Pirates and Twins, then back west to play the Padres and Dodgers on the road. If they can get to Aug. 17 in good shape, that will be quite a thing. |
5) Brewers vs. Cubs
Admit it: The first thing you look for after Opening Day is, “When do the Brewers play the Cubs?” Next year, the teams are scheduled to play May 18-20 and Aug. 31-Sept. 3 in Chicago, and June 26-28 and Sept. 7-9 in Milwaukee. A number of fans noted that it will be the second consecutive season that the Cubs get the majority of home games between the rivals by a 7-6 margin, but someone in the know said that always evens out over four-year stretches of scheduling. So, we can expect that when the 2027 schedule comes out, the Brewers will get that extra home game against their neighbors to the south. It’s something to look forward to next September. |
MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
This weekend’s series in Toronto features premium pitching matchups all three games, including Saturday’s matchup of Brewers right-hander Quinn Priester (11-2, 3.44 ERA) against Toronto right-hander Kevin Gausman (8-10, 3.87 ERA). Priester originally wasn’t supposed to pitch at Rogers Centre. He was lined up to face the D-backs on Wednesday, but he was bumped from that start because of some soreness in his right wrist. He and pitching coach Chris Hook described the issue as minor, but all parties agreed it would be better to wait a few days to let the inflammation subside. Priester, after all, has been the Brewers’ secret weapon. They have won the past 15 games in which he’s pitched -- 12 starts plus three bulk outings behind an opener -- and he’s 10-0 in that stretch, sitting in a tie with Chris Bosio and Cal Eldred (both in 1992) for the longest streak of winning decisions in franchise history. “It’s something that we all talked about and we felt like this was a good decision, just in terms of setting us up to finish it strong rather than at 90 percent,” Priester told MLB.com. “That’s the difference, it feels like to me: 90 percent or 100? I still feel confident going out there at 90 percent, but not as confident as at 100. … “Shoot, this is the most high-intensity innings I’ve thrown in my career. I think it’s one of those learning moments for me, too. I’m learning how to be a big leaguer for 30 starts, not five starts and then in the Minor Leagues for a couple of starts. This is part of me becoming an everyday big league guy.” |
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