MLB 2027 Season: Format, Confirmed Dates and What Is New

MLB 2027 season format: 162 games and two leagues

Major League Baseball has 30 clubs split evenly between the American League and the National League. Each league has three divisions, East, Central and West, with five teams apiece. Every club plays 162 regular-season games, and with 30 clubs that produces the 2,430-game total published in the 2027 calendar.

How the 162 games are divided in the MLB 2027 season

Since the schedule was rebalanced, every team meets every opponent at least once each year. In broad terms, a club plays its four division rivals more than anyone else, faces the other ten clubs in its own league in shorter series, and plays a set of interleague games against the other league. The exact home-and-away split for your team is on the schedule page, where you can filter by team.

The six divisions in the MLB 2027 season

The American League holds the AL East, AL Central and AL West, and the National League holds the NL East, NL Central and NL West. A division title is the surest way into the bracket, because the winner is guaranteed a place among the six qualifiers from its league. Clubs that finish second or third in a division can still reach the bracket through a wild card, which is why September series between teams from different divisions often matter as much as the rivalry games.

Why the MLB 2027 season rewards the long view

With 81 home dates per club, no single game decides much in April, but the density of the calendar means plenty of choices for visitors. If you only have one weekend, pick a series rather than a single date, because rain delays and doubleheaders can shuffle a day.

Key dates of the MLB 2027 season that are confirmed

Some dates are locked in and others are not. Here is the reliable list.

First pitch times are not published, and the Home Run Derby date is not announced. A practical way to use this table is to pick the fixed anchor first, such as Opening Day or the All-Star Game, and then look for series that fall on weekends around it. Dates marked pending should never be treated as bookable until they are announced. Our All-Star page and Spring Training page carry the detail for those events.

MLB 2027 season postseason: wild cards and the 12-team bracket

Twelve clubs reach October: the three division winners and three wild cards from each league. The two division winners with the best records skip the first round, and the other four clubs in each league play a Wild Card Series, then a Division Series, a League Championship Series and finally the World Series. The first round is a best-of-three, the Division Series is best-of-five, and the last two rounds are best-of-seven.

The dates for the 2027 postseason have not been announced. For comparison, the 2026 Wild Card round started on September 29, 2026, and the 2026 World Series begins on October 23. A similar window is plausible for 2027, but it is not confirmed. Details and ticket-timing advice live on the postseason page.

What is new in the MLB 2027 season: stadiums and one-off games

Several parks carry names fans may not recognize. In 2027 the Dodgers play at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium, the Astros at Daikin Park in Houston, the White Sox at Rate Field and the Marlins at loanDepot park. The Athletics play at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento while their Las Vegas ballpark, aimed at 2028, is built. The Rays stay at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg; a new Tampa stadium is targeted for around 2029, not 2027.

Athletics in Las Vegas in the MLB 2027 season

The most unusual item on the calendar is a six-game visit by the Athletics to Las Vegas Ballpark in Summerlin from May 31 to June 5, 2027, first against the Padres and then the Reds. It is a one-time arrangement and not a relocation.

Field of Dreams and Williamsport in the MLB 2027 season

The Red Sox visit the Royals at the Field of Dreams site in Dyersville, Iowa, on August 12, and the Cubs face the Blue Jays at the MLB Little League Classic in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on August 19. Both are small venues, so expect demand to outstrip supply. Browse every club on the teams page.

The 2026 standings as a starting point for the MLB 2027 season

The 2026 regular season is over, and its division winners give a rough picture of the field heading into 2027. In the American League, the Rays won the East at 98-64, the Guardians took the Central at 85-77 and the Astros won the West at 81-81. In the National League, the Braves won the East at 94-68, the Brewers led the Central at 103-59 and the Dodgers took the West at 100-62.

At the time of writing, the American League Championship Series is Rays against Guardians and the National League Championship Series is Brewers against Dodgers, so the 2026 champion is not decided. Last year's results are only a starting point: rosters change over the winter, and we deliberately name no current players. Look at the club pages, such as the Tampa Bay Rays or the Los Angeles Dodgers, for the home-park view.

MLB 2027 season uncertainty: the collective bargaining agreement

The agreement between MLB and the players' union expires on December 1, 2026. The owners have proposed a salary cap, and as of October 11, 2026, there is no new deal and no lockout. A stoppage could delay Spring Training or Opening Day; nothing is decided. The most recent lockout ran from December 2021 to March 2022, pushed the 2022 opener to April 7 and still ended with a 162-game season. The lockout page explains what that would mean for tickets you already hold.

How to follow the MLB 2027 season and ticket news

Use the home page for the overview, the schedule to build a trip and the alert box on any page to hear when sales open. Single-game tickets generally go on sale in winter or early spring, with timing that varies by club, and prices are dynamic, so we do not publish figures. If you are crossing the ocean for a trip, remember that MLB has no international series planned for 2027, which makes the domestic calendar the only option; the World Tour page will flag any change.