The Pittsburgh Pirates are already looking ahead to 2027 Spring Training, and the club’s new schedule gives a clear picture of how March in Florida will unfold.
Spring Training begins on Feb. 19 and runs through March 21, with the Pirates set for 30 Grapefruit League games. Pittsburgh will again be based in Bradenton, Fla., at Pirate City and LECOM Park, where the team will play home games for the 59th season after first taking the field there in 1969.
Every game will stay in Florida, giving the Pirates a compact slate centered on the western side of the state near Bradenton. That means no trips out to the East Coast, unlike last Spring Training when the Pirates traveled to face the St. Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros.
The schedule is built around familiar opponents. Pittsburgh will see the Baltimore Orioles six times, the Toronto Blue Jays five times, the Philadelphia Phillies four times, the Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox three times each, and the Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees twice each. The Pirates will face all five American League East teams, along with the Braves and Phillies from the National League East and the Tigers and Twins from the American League Central.
The opener comes against the Blue Jays at home on Feb. 19, followed by home dates with the Tigers and Braves and road games against the Orioles, Blue Jays, Phillies and Rays in the first stretch. March brings a full run of matchups, including a March 12 doubleheader against the Red Sox at home and the Orioles on the road, with two squads going out.
Here is the full slate: Feb.
19-Toronto Blue Jays (Home) Feb.
20-Detroit Tigers (Home) Feb.
21-Baltimore Orioles (Away) Feb.
22-Toronto Blue Jays (Away) Feb.
23-Atlanta Braves (Home) Feb.
24-Boston Red Sox (Home) Feb.
25-Philadelphia Phillies (Away) Feb.
26-Baltimore Orioles (Home) Feb.
27-Tampa Bay Rays (Away) Feb.
28-Philadelphia Phillies (Home)
March 1-Toronto Blue Jays (Road) March 2-Baltimore Orioles (Road)
March 3-Atlanta Braves (Home) March 4-Toronto Blue Jays (Home)
March 5-Philadelphia Phillies (Road) March 6-Detroit Tigers (Road)
March 7-Minnesota Twins (Home) March 9-Baltimore Orioles (Home)
March 10-Minnesota Twins (Road) March 11-Toronto Blue Jays (Road)
March 12-Boston Red Sox (Home)/Baltimore Orioles (Road) March 13-New York Yankees (Home)
March 14-Tampa Bay Rays (Road) March 15-Philadelphia Phillies (Home)
March 17-Tampa Bay Rays (Home) March 18-New York Yankees (Road)
March 19-Boston Red Sox (Road) March 20-Baltimore Orioles (Home)
March 21-Atlanta Braves (Road)
MLB released the schedule five months early even though Spring Training always carries uncertainty, especially with the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire on Dec. 1 and a possible lockout looming over the 2027 season. For now, though, the league is acting as if the games will be played.
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