Opening Day Forecasts Across the Nation's Baseball Stadiums

Opening Day for Major League Baseball (MLB) is a classic spring tradition. This year's festivities will happen at ballparks all around the country on Thursday, March 27. Will Mother Nature cooperate with all of the fun? Here is a look at the forecast for the big day.

Where Will Baseball Fans Need to Prepare for the Weather?

The short story is that there are not expected to be any major weather events delivering widespread impacts for Opening Day. This is a relief after the last few weeks of severe weather across much of the central and eastern U.S. However, that does not mean that it will be smooth sailing for every ballpark on Thursday.

There are 14 MLB games on the docket on Thursday. One additional Opening Day game is on tap for Friday. Of these 15 games, nine will be played outside in stadiums that do not enjoy the convenience of a retractable roof. The remaining six game sites have a roof that can be closed in the case of inclement weather.

Forecasters are pointing to St. Louis as being the city with the greatest potential for severe weather on Thursday. The St. Louis Cardinals will host the Minnesota Twins at Busch Stadium. Although the day is not expected to be a total washout, sporadic rain showers could force a game delay at times.

Fans headed out to root on the hometown Cardinals will want to bring a poncho in the event that the skies open up over the Arch City. There is also a slight chance that the rain could evolve into scattered thunderstorms just in time for first pitch at 3:15 pm local time. Highs will hover in the mid to upper 60s with winds coming from the south-southeast at 10 to 15 mph.

It could also be a dicey situation just to the west on Interstate 70 in Kansas City. The Royals are set to host the Cleveland Guardians at 3:10 pm local time. While the day will start with sunshine, clouds and the chance of a rain shower or thunderstorm will increase in the afternoon hours. It will be a toasty day in Kansas City with a high in the low 80s, boosted by the warm winds coming in at 10 to 20 mph from the south-southwest.

Heading up to Chicago, it will be mostly dry, but clouds will keep the temperatures in the mid 50s for a high. The White Sox are scheduled to take to the field at Guaranteed Rate Field at 3:10 pm local time to take on the Los Angeles Angels.