Royals announce 2016 Spring Training schedule

The Kansas City Royals announced their 2016 Spring Training schedule today, with the club opening its 14th season in the Cactus League as the home team against its Surprise complex mates, the Texas Rangers, on Wednesday, March 2.

The Royals will prepare for defense of their World Championship with a 34-game Spring Training schedule that features 15 home games at Surprise Stadium, with one additional game (March 30 vs. Texas) as the visiting team at the park. The first six home games will start at 2:05 p.m. CT, until Daylight Savings Time on March 12, when remaining day games will begin at 3:05 p.m. CT.

Other highlights include a two-game series against the Rangers at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on Friday, March 18 and Saturday, March 19. The Royals will conclude the spring schedule with a two-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field, Friday, April 1 (8:40 p.m.) and Saturday, April 2 (3:10 pm.), before opening the regular season on Sunday, April 3 against their 2015 World Series opponent, the New York Mets, on ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball".

The Surprise Recreation Campus will accept mail orders as well as online orders. To obtain a ticket brochure, fans can call (623) 222-2222 or visit www.surprisespringtraining.com online. Individual Spring Training game tickets go on sale via an online pre-sale on Saturday, December 12 through tickets.com.

The Surprise Recreation Campus Box Office will open at 7 a.m. local time on Saturday, January 9 for walk-up purchases. A service charge will be applied to tickets purchased online or over the phone. Fans with questions about Spring Training tickets may call (623) 222-2222, beginning today.

Pitchers and catchers will report to Surprise on Thursday, February 18. Workouts for pitchers begin the following day, Friday, February 19. The remainder of the squad will report on Monday, February 22 and begin workouts for the 2016 campaign on Tuesday, February 23.