A couple of playoff hopefuls looking for a bounceback season will square off when the Royals and Braves open the season against each other on March 27 at Truist Park. This will be the first time the two teams have played against each other on Opening Day.
Walt Weiss will open his tenure as the Braves’ manager, and the Royals will draw upon some good memories as they visit Atlanta for the first time since clinching a postseason berth there during the final weekend of the 2024 season.
Both Atlanta and Kansas City were unsuccessful with their respective bids to return to the playoffs last year.
This season opener will also give two of Venezuela’s proudest sons, Braves right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. and Royals catcher Salvador Perez, a chance to further celebrate the World Baseball Classic title they recently won.
Royals: LHP Cole Ragans
Previous Opening Days starts: Two (2024, ‘25)
2025 season: 3-3, 4.67 ERA in 13 starts
There was no real question who the Royals would turn to for Game 1 of their 2026 season, because as manager Matt Quatraro likes to say, Kansas City is “going to be better the more starts [Ragans] makes.” That’s because Ragans is this team’s ace, a frontline starter and one of the best in baseball with his high-powered fastball and some nasty secondaries.
The most important thing for Ragans, though, is to stay on the field. He missed a combined 100 team games last season on two separate injured list stints with a left groin strain and left rotator cuff strain. He focused this offseason on his body, from nutrition to strength and conditioning, to better help him stay healthy.
Ragans’ campaign to help the Royals for a full season starts next week.
“It’s something that I don’t take for granted or don’t take lightly,” Ragans said. “Just for them to have the belief in me to go out there and get us going means a lot. My third [Opening Day start] in a row is crazy to think about. Never in my dreams would I have thought I’d be able to do this.”
Braves: LHP Chris Sale
Previous Opening Day starts: Six (2013, ‘14, ‘16 for White Sox; ‘18, ‘19 for Red Sox; ‘25 for Braves)
2025 season: 7-5, 2.58 ERA in 21 appearances (20 starts)
When Sale throws his first pitch against the Royals, he will experience the rarity of having made multiple Opening Day starts for at least three teams. The 37-year-old lefty is looking forward to performing this season-opening assignment in front of the home crowd.
“Opening Day is a special event,” Sale said. “It’s like the first day of school. There’s nothing like it. When [Weiss] told me about this one, I was just as excited as I was when I made my first Opening Day start in 2013. I know what an honor it is to throw the first pitch of the season for your team.”
Sale made three Opening Day starts for the White Sox (2013, 14 and ‘16) and two more for the Red Sox (2018 and ‘19). When injuries limited him to a total of 151 innings from 2020-23, it appeared his career was nearing an end. But he won the National League Cy Young Award in 2024 and is now preparing to start the Braves’ season opener for a second straight year.
The veteran southpaw has posted a 2.46 ERA over 50 appearances (49 starts) for the Braves over the past two seasons. Despite missing significant time last year with a fractured left ribcage, he still ranks 10th among all MLB pitchers in strikeouts over the past two seasons with 390.
The nine-time All-Star also ranks second among starters (minimum 200 innings) over that span with a 32.2 percent strikeout rate, trailing only Garrett Crochet (32.9 percent). The numbers show Sale is back to being the dominant pitcher he was when he finished in the top six in American League Cy Young balloting over seven straight years from 2012-18.
Sale has a 4.00 ERA in six OD starts. He has allowed three or fewer earned runs over at least five innings in five of these outings.