It’s sunny, the birds are chirping, and things are warming up in the northern half of the country—baseball season is on the horizon. Except, it isn’t quite here yet. The Opening Day of the 2025 MLB season is strangely set for Thursday, coinciding with the Sweet 16 of March Madness.
This scheduling decision is a significant misstep. March is consumed by the tradition of filling out brackets for March Madness and witnessing 18- and 19-year-olds shine in crucial games, overshadowing other sports. Even the NBA and NHL take a backseat as they approach the end of their regular seasons. It’s particularly challenging for baseball, a sport that typically gains attention later in the summer, to carve out a spot in a packed March sports calendar. Events like Opening Day, the Home Run Derby, and the All-Star Game are critical draws during the MLB regular season.
To let Opening Day get eclipsed by college basketball is a strategic error that shouldn’t happen given today’s hyper-optimized live sports scheduling. What’s worse is there was a better alternative: Tuesday, March 25, would have been an excellent day to kick off the baseball season. Considering what MLB would have faced on that date, the competition would have been minimal. TNT featured an NBA doubleheader, including games like Golden State Warriors vs. Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Sacramento Kings, while ESPN was airing TGL Finals matches and other minor events. This lineup pales in comparison to the fierce competition on Thursday.
Instead, MLB is launching the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers’ Opening Day game directly against March Madness showdowns like Maryland vs. Florida and BYU vs. Alabama. It’s a baffling choice. While some may argue that Tuesday isn’t as favorable for fans attending in person, we’ve long acknowledged that league scheduling doesn’t prioritize live attendees. Those who can take off work for Thursday’s Opening Day are equally able to do so on Tuesday. The media attention MLB would garner by starting a couple of days earlier would greatly outweigh any dissatisfaction from fans unable to attend.
Today should have been a celebration of baseball. Instead of discussing Doc Rivers on First Take, the focus could be on stars like Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani with Chris “Mad Dog” Russo and Jeff Passan. FS1’s First Things First even covered Bronny James’ G-League performance recently. If segments like these are making the cut, even the most NFL and NBA-centric shows would be compelled to talk about baseball if today were Opening Day.
For a league eager to boost its marketing and mainstream appeal, allowing such a prime opportunity to slip through the cracks is perplexing. Baseball should occupy the space when there’s little else happening, but with nothing else going on today, it’s clear that baseball has missed the mark.
