Coming off of their fifth consecutive losing season and with Wrigley Field roughly three-fourths full, the Cubs and Cardinals headlined MLB Opening Day on ESPN last season. Next season, fresh off the NLCS and featuring the defending Rookie of the Year, Cy Young and Manager of the Year winners, they are not.
In fact, there will be plenty of Cubs fans who struggle to even stay up through the fourth inning of their Opening Day game. The Cubs start their season on the road against the Angels with first pitch at 9:05 p.m. CST.
Here's the 2016 Opening Day schedule on ESPN: pic.twitter.com/fWD3KIJSpF
— Stefan Stevenson (@StevensonFWST) November 19, 2015
The Cubs won’t even get the top billing in ESPN. Their Monday, Apr. 4 game will be played on ESPN2.
The matchup should be a fun one. The Angels, who fell just a game out of the playoffs last season, features two of the biggest stars in the game with Mike Trout and Albert Pujols.
After two road series to start the year, the Cubs will finally have their home opener Monday, Apr. 11 against the Reds.