ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — It wasn't too long ago when MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred made his way to a podium and announced that baseball's opening day would be delayed, and that the first two series of every team's schedule was canceled.
It was the beginning of what fans feared, a shortened season due to a lockout. Owners and players were deadlocked in what was a heated labor negotiation. For the second time in three years, baseball would not have 162 games.
Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed and an agreement was reached, saving the full season. However, due to spring training, games still had to be pushed back.
So, what happens to those first two series?
MLB has announced they have been rescheduled for later in the season. For the Tampa Bay Rays, those games were against division rivals Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays.
Originally, those two series were meant to kick off the Rays' 2022 season. Instead, the team will face another division rival in the Baltimore Orioles before welcoming the Oakland Athletics into town.
The new dates for those rescheduled games are as follows:
Red Sox games:
- 7:10 p.m. Monday, October 3, at Fenway Park
- 7:10 p.m. Tuesday, October 4, at Fenway Park
- Wednesday, October 5, at Fenway Park (First Pitch time TBD)
Blue Jays games:
- 12:07 p.m. Saturday, July 2, at Rogers Centre
- 6:07 p.m. Saturday, July 2, at Rogers Centre
- 1:07 p.m. Tuesday, September 13, at Rogers Centre
- 7:07 p.m. Tuesday, September 13, at Rogers Centre
- 3:07 p.m. Thursday, September 15, at Rogers Centre