Along with announcing a seven-game slate throughout the first two days of the 2017 regular season, ESPN added the Chicago Cubs home opener to their broadcast schedule for Monday Night Baseball. The Cubs host the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 10, with coverage beginning at 5 p.m. PT.
To this point it’s the second appearance on ESPN for both the Cubs and Dodgers next season. However, the Dodgers’ home opener against the San Diego Padres on April 3 is subject to local blackout. The same will not hold true when the Dodgers make their first visit to Wrigley Field since the 2016 National League Championship Series.
ESPN will exclusively televise the matchup, and provide coverage of the Cubs’ championship ceremony. The reigning World Series champions open the season with a six-game road trip.
For the Dodgers the April 10 contest will be their eighth game of the season and mark the start of the second series on a six-game road trip.
A quirk in the schedule calls for an off-day before the Cubs and Dodgers resume the three-game series.
Excluding the postseason, the Dodgers went 1-3 against the Cubs on the road, though took two of three at Chavez Ravine. In the playoffs Los Angeles was 1-2 at Wrigley Field in the NLCS.
All MLB games carried on ESPN will also stream on WatchESPN and the ESPN app. The network will announce additions to their Sunday Night Baseball schedule in the weeks ahead and as the season carries on.
