The Super Bowl has come and passed, making it officially baseball season.

Pitchers and catchers report to Arizona on Thursday of this week, with the first game only nine days after reporting.

What other key dates this season should fans mark on their calendars?

SPRING TRAINING

As mentioned, pitchers and catchers report on Thursday. The first Spring Training game of the year is Saturday, February 21. There is split-team action, with one squad facing the Reds and the other facing the Brewers, with the Reds at home. 

The next Spring date to mark down is March 19th. This is the date of the Spring Breakout, where the Guardians’ prospects face the Angels’ prospects, while the rest of the team will face the Royals Spring squad.

#GuardsSpring loading … ⏳#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/pkKkPKKIMh

— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) February 5, 2026REGULAR SEASON

The Regular Season for the Guardians begins on the West Coast. Their first series is against the Mariners in Seattle, with the Opening Day game set for March 26th. After a four-game set against Seattle, the team goes on to play the back-to-back defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

Once that West Coast swing is over, the Guardians return home to have their home opener on Friday, April 3rd, against the Chicago Cubs. Right after the Cubs series, the Guardians get their first AL Central action of the season with a three-game set against the Kansas City Royals.

The next set of games to keep an eye on begins May 29th when the Guardians host the Red Sox. This begins seven straight series against teams expected to be inplayoff contention. You have the Red Sox, at the Yankees, at the Rangers, home against the Yankees, home against the Tigers, at the Brewers, then at the Astros. The month wraps up with the Guardians at the White Sox, home against the Mariners, and home against the Rangers.

Even worse, the month of June has their longest road trip of the season built in. They will have nine straight road games sandwiched between the Tigers and Mariners home series. They will travel to Milwaukee, to Houston, and then to the South Side of Chicago. Fortunately, the extent of the travel isn’t monstrous, but spending nine straight games on the road is tough for any team, especially in the middle of June.

The All-Star break begins after their July 12th road game at the Miami Marlins and runs until their home game against the Pirates on July 17th. Out of the break, the Guardians host the Pirates and the Twins before hitting the road to take on the Rays and the Reds.

Then, on to September we go. The last series of the season could mean the entire division yet again for the Guardians, as they travel to Kansas City for a three-game set the final weekend of the year. To make things harder, playoff contender Red Sox are the Guardians’ opponent right before that final series, and it is on the road as well. 

Handling business at the beginning of September, when they host the Tigers and White Sox in a series and go on the road to Minnesota, will help them in any divisional battle they may find themselves in, but that final Royals series may end up deciding it.

Those are the key moments in this year’s calendar. Early West Coast action, early action against a tough AL Central divisional rival, a massive month of June, a bit of a respite in July, then it’s playoff time the entire month of September, where everything ends up being decided.

Baseball is almost here, and the Guardians are gearing up for a third consecutive AL Central title. The schedule sets up well for them in the back half, but the first couple of weeks have the potential to be shaky, especially with such a young lineup. If there is success on the road against the Mariners and the Dodgers, then Guardians fans will have every right to get excited about this team early on.