All eyes will be on San Francisco on Wednesday, when the Yankees and Giants will inaugurate the 2026 regular season with their highly anticipated clash at Oracle Park as part of MLB Opening Night. And with a new season comes a new way to watch baseball, as this will be the first-ever live MLB broadcast on Netflix.
Here is what you need to know about this special season-starting event and MLB on Netflix.
When is the MLB Opening Night game, and how can I watch it?
First pitch of the Yankees-Giants game from San Francisco's Oracle Park is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET on Wednesday. It will be streamed globally on Netflix, marking the first time a live MLB game will be carried by the service.
An MLB Opening Night pregame show on Netflix will begin at 7 p.m. ET.
Will there be other baseball games on Netflix this year?
Yes! Beyond Opening Night, Netflix will stream two other notable events during the 2026 MLB season: The T-Mobile Home Run Derby in Philadelphia on July 13 and the MLB Field of Dreams Game between the Phillies and Twins in Dyersville, Iowa, on Aug. 13.
Netflix will also be the home for the MLB Opening Night Game, the T-Mobile Home Run Derby and an additional special event game in 2027 and '28.
What should I know about the teams in this year's Opening Night game?
The Yankees, led by three-time American League MVP Aaron Judge, will be looking to build on their second consecutive 94-win campaign in 2025. Their season ended with a loss to the AL champion Blue Jays in the ALDS last year, but they believe they have all the pieces to make another deep postseason run in ‘26.
“I feel like we've had an excellent camp,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “Knock on wood from the injury front, that has been good. The guys that are on the come, that are going to join us at different points of the season are all doing well and in line. I feel like a lot of our young guys really showed well and whether they're here at the start or not, you really feel like all of them could be real contributors. So that's exciting. I like our depth. We'll have some competition that unfolds as the season goes on, because we've got good people and good players. And we're looking forward to teeing it up on Wednesday.”
The Giants will kick off a new era under first-year manager Tony Vitello, who is the first college coach to jump directly to the Majors without having any prior experience working in professional baseball. Vitello will be charged with getting the most out of a roster that finished 81-81 in 2025 and has missed the playoffs in eight of the last nine years. Opening against the Yankees won’t be the easiest of tasks, but the Giants are ready to embrace the challenge.
“I think the last time the Yankees came, Aaron had a comment that was like, ‘We're the Yankees, we’ve got to give them a show,’” Giants ace Logan Webb said. “We're the Giants, we’ve got to give them a show, too. This is show business, so we’re going to go out there and hopefully compete our butts off and come out victorious.”
What are the projected lineups?
Yankees:
1. Trent Grisham, CF
2. Aaron Judge, RF
3. Cody Bellinger, LF
4. Ben Rice, 1B
5. Giancarlo Stanton, DH
6. Jazz Chisholm Jr., 2B
7. José Caballero, SS
8. Ryan McMahon, 3B
9. Austin Wells, C
Giants:
1. Heliot Ramos, LF
2. Rafael Devers, 1B
3. Matt Chapman, 3B
4. Willy Adames, SS
5. Luis Arraez, 2B
6. Jerar Encarnacion, DH
7. Jung Hoo Lee, RF
8. Harrison Bader, CF
9. Patrick Bailey, C
Who are the starting pitchers?
Yankees: LHP Max Fried
Previous Opening Day starts: 2021, 2022, 2023
2025 season: 19-5, 2.86 ERA in 32 starts
Fried filled the role of ace for the Yankees last year, but because of the timing of Gerrit Cole’s injury, he didn't receive the honor of starting on Opening Day. That will change on Wednesday. In 2025, Fried set career highs in wins, starts (32), innings pitched (195 1/3) and strikeouts (189), earning selection as an American League All-Star.
Giants: RHP Logan Webb
Previous Opening Day starts: 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
2025 season: 15-11, 3.22 ERA in 34 starts
After wrapping up his successful stint with Team USA at the World Baseball Classic, Webb is slated to make his fifth consecutive Opening Day start for the Giants, the second-longest streak in franchise history behind Hall of Famer Juan Marichal (6). The 29-year-old right-hander finished fourth in National League Cy Young voting after leading the Majors in innings (207) and the NL in strikeouts (224) in 2025.
How might the bullpens line up after the starter?
Yankees: David Bednar assumed the role of closer after his acquisition in a late July trade, and one of his primary setup men will be a familiar face to Giants fans -- Camilo Doval, who saved 107 games for San Francisco from 2021-25. Fernando Cruz continues to flash one of the league’s most devastating splitters, while Tim Hill offers a funky sidewinding look from the left side.
Giants: Ryan Walker didn’t give up a run in seven Cactus League appearances this spring, so he should be in line to shift back into the closer spot in 2026. Lefty Erik Miller and WBC standout José Buttó also figure to be part of the back-end mix in some capacity, but the Giants have considered keeping roles fluid this year.
Any injuries of note?
Yankees: Shortstop Anthony Volpe is continuing to rehab from left shoulder surgery and is not expected to return until May. Cole, Carlos Rodón and Clarke Schmidt are all rehabbing from various procedures.
Giants: Bader is day to day with left hamstring tightness, but the Giants are optimistic he’ll be ready for Wednesday. If he’s still hampered, the Giants could have him start at DH and shift right fielder Jung Hoo Lee back to center.
San Francisco’s bullpen will be without relievers Sam Hentges, Reiver Sanmartin and Joel Peguero, all of whom are expected to open the season on the injured list. Right-handers Hayden Birdsong and Randy Rodríguez are also out for the year due to Tommy John surgery.
What is the Yankees and Giants' head-to-head history?
Two of the sport's most historic franchises, the Yankees and Giants first faced each other in the 1921 World Series. It was their first of seven Fall Classic matchups, all but one of which occurred before the Giants left New York for San Francisco in 1958. The Giants won the World Series showdowns in 1921 and '22 before the Yankees triumphed in the next five, most recently in 1962.
These two teams didn't meet in the regular season until 2002. Last April, the Giants visited Yankee Stadium for a three-game series and won two of those meetings. However, the Yankees have claimed 16 of their 24 regular-season games versus the Giants all time. Including the postseason, the Yankees hold a 39-27-1 head-to-head record in this head-to-head series.
Who are the announcers for the MLB Opening Night game?
Matt Vasgersian will serve as the play-by-play announcer, and he will be joined in the booth by Hall of Fame starting pitcher CC Sabathia and four-time All-Star outfielder Hunter Pence. Lauren Shehadi will be the in-game reporter.
Elle Duncan is the game's in-studio host while all-time home run king Barry Bonds, three-time National League MVP Albert Pujols and three-time All-Star Anthony Rizzo will be in-studio analysts. Comedian Bert Kreischer will also contribute to the broadcast.
What else makes this game unique?
This will be the first MLB regular-season game to use the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System. ABS has been tested in the Minor Leagues since 2022 and in Major League Spring Training since last year.
The streaming service is also calling on fans to submit a video of themselves singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” for a chance to be featured during the broadcast. Netflix wants fans to get creative and is encouraging them to film their renditions “at home, the ballfield, solo or with friends.”
If MLB Opening Night is Wednesday, when is MLB Opening Day?
Opening Day will take place on Thursday, with 11 games on the schedule. Six other clubs will play their first regular-season game on Friday.