PITTSBURGH -- The Pirates' 2017 Spring Training schedule has something of an international flavor, pitting the Bucs against a World Baseball Classic squad and ending north of the border.
Pittsburgh on Tuesday announced its Spring Training schedule and ticket pricing for home games at McKechnie Field in Bradenton, Fla., the Pirates' spring home since 1969. They will play 32 games in Florida, and their 18-game home slate includes an exhibition matchup with the Dominican Republic's World Baseball Classic team on March 8.
The Bucs will open Grapefruit League play on Feb. 25, with a pair of split-squad games at 1:05 p.m. ET, fielding one team at home against the Orioles and sending another to face the Rays in Port Charlotte, Fla.
Before beginning the regular season at Fenway Park on April 3, the Pirates will play two games against the Blue Jays at Olympic Stadium in Montreal. The first game is scheduled for March 31 at 7:07 p.m., and their Spring Training finale is slated for April 1 at 1:07 p.m.
Tentatively, the Pirates are scheduled to play three night games during Grapefruit League play, one on the road against the Red Sox on March 16 with the other two at home during the final week of Spring Training. Those games are slated to begin at 6:05 p.m. The rest of their home games are scheduled to start at 1:05 p.m.
The Pirates drew 103,762 fans to 15 Spring Training home games at McKechnie Field last spring, the club's second-highest attendance total behind only the 106,038 fans they drew in 2015.
The Bucs' full Spring Training schedule and ticket information are available at pirates.com/springtraining.