Historical & Current Events dictionary
Opening Day
[ oh-puh-ning dey ]
What is Opening Day?
Opening Day is the first day of the Major League Baseball (MLB) season—the day on which most or all teams in the league play their first game.
The name is also used for the first day of the baseball season in other leagues, including minor leagues, professional leagues in other countries, college leagues, and youth leagues.
The term can also refer to the day on which a particular team starts its season, as in It’s Opening Day for the Phillies, who will host the Braves. This sense of the term is sometimes uncapitalized.
Opening Day is part of US baseball tradition and culture, with many baseball fans associating it with the start of spring and treating it as an unofficial holiday.
Similar terms include Opening Series and Opening Night. A team’s first home game is called their home opener (though this term is commonly used in other sports).
⚡️When is Opening Day?
MLB Opening Day 2024 is scheduled for March 28.
MLB Opening Day typically happens in late March or early April.
Where does Opening Day come from?
The first Opening Day of what would become Major League Baseball is often cited as having been held on April 22, 1876, featuring a game between the Philadelphia Athletics and the Boston Red Caps. As the league expanded, more and more teams began to take part in Opening Day, with most or all major league teams eventually playing on Opening Day.
Who uses Opening Day?
Did you know … ?
- The MLB has incorporated the term Opening Day into official logos since the early 2000s.
- Most US presidents since William Taft have thrown a ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day.
- Jackie Robinson became the first Black player in Major League Baseball when he played on Opening Day in 1947.
What are other words used in discussion of Opening Day?
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of Opening Day like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of Opening Day that will help our users expand their word mastery.