Rivalry Rundown

With rivalry weekend coming up, there are so many matchups to watch out for and storylines to consider. Every team will play their designated rival, with 11 interleague series and 4 noninterleague matchups. Here's everything you need to know.

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1. Houston Astros vs Texas Rangers

The Astros and the Rangers rivalry is one of the oldest in Major League Baseball. This is one of those intrastate rivlaries that grew in the Texas minor leagues and slowly took to the majors. The rivalry became even more heated a decade ago when the Astros joined the Rangers in the American League West division. The biggest competition is none other than the right to call Nolan Ryan, the Hall of Famer who pitched for both teams, their very own. Although this is a state rivalry, both teams have rivals of their own as well. To a lesser degree, the Rangers also developed a rivalry between the Mariners and the Athletics, while the Astros face the hatred of every organization due to their scandal in 2017. Both the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers have pitching that ranks in the top 10 by ERA+, so it can almost be guaranteed that we will see tight and low scoring games. 

2. New York Yankees vs New York Mets

The subway series itself, is one of the most heated rivalries in baseball today. It's no secret that the stakes will be even higher due to the recent Juan Soto trade. Fans have expressed their anger with Soto for leaving the Bronx, but the real question is who will come out on top after this series. Beyond geography, the teams have battled for the attention of New York since the Mets made their debut in 1962, but the Yankees have almost always dominated their Queens counterpart. The New York teams met in the 2000 World Series when Roger Clemens threw an entire piece of lumber at Mike Piazza. Even now, a quarter of a century later, the Mets are coming after their big brother team after convincing one of their star players to leave the Bronx. Juan Soto has his own storyline with fans, specifically with the Bleacher Creatures behind the right-field wall. The Yankees right-fielder had a special relationship with his fans, and even played along with the "re-sign Soto" chants throughout the 2024 season. Now that Soto has in fact, not re-signed, there is no doubt that he will face the wrath of Yankees fans throughout the series. 

3. St Louis Cardinals vs Kansas City Royals 

The University of Missouri sits directly in the middle of Busch Stadium and Kauffman Stadium, so geographically, the teams were destined to have some wrath, and the 1985 World Series was one that Cardinals fans still cry about. Both teams have rebounded from sub- .500 starts. While the Royals bounce-back was expected, the Cardinals' sudden rise is shocking. Both teams have a good momentum going right now, and the series definitely won't disappoint. 

4. Chicago White Sox vs Chicago Cubs 

Similarly to the New York rivalries, Rate Field and Wrigley Field are separated by only a 5.5 mile subway ride. The Cubs and the White Sox are natural rivals, and growing up in Chicago means loving one team, and hating the other. Although both teams are rarely successful at the same time, it does not stop fanbases from shunning the other. The tensions were only heightened in 2006, when there was a home plate collision and a brawl between A.J. Pierzynski and Michael Barrett. Most would assume that the Cubs will sweep the White Sox with no problem considering the White Sox's disappointing performance this year, but it is important to note that both teams give up nearly the same amount of runs each game. By the numbers, the White Sox actually have a better bullpen than the Cubs, which could play to their advantage. Who knows, maybe this is the game that Luis Robert Jr rights his season. 

5. Cleveland Guardians vs Cincinatti Reds

Another in-state rivalry, this time in the state of Ohio. Cleveland has owned this matchup, beating the reds 76 out of the 135 games that they have met. The Reds haven't even won a series against the Guardians in over a decade. Reds manager, Terry Francona, previously managed the Cleveland Guardians (Indians), but will have to wait for his welcome, back in Cleveland. This weekend, the Reds are focused on breaking their decade-long losing streak against their rivals, but they'll have to struggle with Jose Ramirez who currently has a .935 career OPS against them with 12 homeruns. 

6. Athletics vs San Fransisco Giants

This matchup can no longer be named the "Bay Bridge Series" now that the Athletics have left Oakland, but it will be interesting to see how this rivalry plays out with the Athletics relocation nonetheless. The real rivalry between these teams was between the fans, but now that the people of Oakland feel betrayed, that aspect is long gone. Matt Chapman is going to be the one to watch throughout this series. The A's drafted Chapman in the first round back in 2014, and he was with the A's during their three consecutive playoff appearances back from 2018-2020. However, Chapman was then traded which is yet another cheap decision made by the A's, and now plays for the Giants. The A's have significantly declined since then, but they have been able to limit Chapman to four hits and no homeruns against them in 25 at bats throughout the past two years. 

7. Washington Nationals vs Baltimore Orioles

Nothing spices up a rivalry series quite like a court case and media rights drama! Although the Orioles and the Nationals did not have a deep rivalry for the longest time, things started to heat up regarding the MASN broadcast drama in 2014. The Orioles opposed a franchise taking over their media market, so Major League Baseball ordered Nationals games to be broadcasted by MASN, which is the Orioles owned network. The franchises both disagreed on media rights, so Baltimore decided to take things to court which ignited a battle between the two teams. The MLB ended up dissolving the agreement, and this is the teams' first matchup since. Both teams feature excicting young players, which will be the highlight of this series. The Nationals are as projected, the fourth seed in the NL East and are on track to not reach the post season for the sixth consecutive season. The Orioles have also disappointed their fans, and are dead last in the AL East so far this season. Baltimore is fighting to dig themselves out of this hole in hopes to make the postseason after their past consecutive appearances. 

8. Seattle Mariners vs San Diego Padres

Andres Munoz and Matt Brash are the Mariners top two relievers. Where did they come from? San Diego. Two separate trades made on the same day in 2020 sent Seattle their star relievers. Not to mention the teams share a spring training complex in Arizona and neither team has won a World Series. This series will be an interesting matchup for sure, but the rivalry isn't so heated compared to the others. The rivalry only came about because neither team had a logical opponent back in 1997. Both teams are battling for first place, the Padres in the NL West and the Mariners in the AL West. However it has been a while since either team won a division title. The Padres won their last division title in 2006, while the Mariners won their last in 2001, but both teams have serious MVP candidates to focus on. Fernando Tatis Jr is currently leading the National League in WAR, and Cal Raleigh is currently one of the leaders (behind Aaron Judge of course) in the American League. The Padres and Dodgers rivalry is one of the best rivalries in the game right now, but the Mariners hardly have a rival unless you want to consider the Houston Astros. But again, who in the AL West doesn't hate the Astros?

9. Los Angeles Angels vs Los Angeles Dodgers

Two words: Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani made his major league debut in 2018 with the Angels with his unique two-way play as a pitcher and a DH. He quickly became a franchise favorite, and put up the numbers as well. However, Ohtani left the Angels after the 2023 season for none other than their LA rivals, the Dodgers. Ohtani has had a legendary run with the Dodgers as well, as they are currently holding first place in the NL West. There is no doubt that this series will be heated due to the All-Star and MVP, but fans can't forget about Clayton Kershaws return. Kershaw is returning from toe and knee surgeries during the off-season, and with the Padres only half a game back, the Dodgers need him now more than ever, especially with Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell on the IL with shoulder injuries. Ohtani is also still going through his pitching rehab and is not expected to be back on the mound until after the All-Star break. 

10. Tampa Bay Rays vs Miami Marlins

There isn't much of a rivalry here either, besides the fact that they both reside in Florida. The NHL rivalry between the Lightning and the Panthers is definitely more competitive. The Rays have been dominating against Miami since 2019 and it doesn't appear that much will change. The Rays definitely see this as merely a chance to jump start their season given their recent dominance against the Marlins. If the Marlins even want a chance in this series, they will need Sandy Alcantara, their former Cy Young winner to pick it up, but he has struggled since returning from Tommy John surgery, and is set to start on Sunday. 

11. Pittsburgh Pirates vs Philadelphia Phillies

Besides the obvious Philadelphia rivalry reasons, these two have played in more than 2,300 games against each other. From 1969 to 1994, the Pirates and the Phillies were both in the NL East which gave fans plenty of time to form a rivalry. Although the Phillies have clearly been the better team recently, the Pirates dominate in their matchups winning 1,230 games while the Phillies have only won 1,085. As if that isn't enough, Andrew McCutchen switched sides for three seasons before he came back to Philly where he earned his share of boos. The main player to watch? Paul Skenes. This will be Skenes' first time facing Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber who are apart of the Phillies offense which ranks in the top 10 in OPS. Skenes is coming off of a good outing against the Mets, but has yet to reach double digits in K's in a single outing this year. His matchup against the Phillies will be tough. 

12. Minnesota Twins vs Milwuakee Brewers

The "Border Battle" is more a product of NFL rivalry than actual baseball rivalries. The Packers-Vikings rivalry carried over into Major League Baseball, and so did the college rivalry between the University of Wisconsin- Madison and the University of Minnesota. This rivalry is basically the people of Milwaukee against the people of Minnesota. The actual rivalry between the Twins and the Brewers is way too friendly. The Brewers have yet to get hot this season, they have hovered around .500 the whole time. While the Twins are at .500 as well, they have been hot recently, but have barely gained attention because everyone in the Central is hot except for the White Sox. Both teams are still trying to establish their identity this season. 

13. Detroit Tigers vs Toronto Blue Jays

The only reason these two can be considered rivals is because it was once a heated series when the Tigers were in the AL East. Now that they have moved to the AL Central, there is not much to be said. The Tigers had a great finish in the 2024 season and have proved that that was no glitch. They currently have the best starting rotation in the American League with their star, Tarik Skubal, who personally, I would never choose to face as a batter. Luckily, the Blue Jays caught a break and will not be facing Skubal this weekend, but they won't have 2 of their 3 starters, Chris Bassitt and Kevin Gausman, on the mound either.

14. Atlanta Braves vs Boston Red Sox

This is another matchup that many may be confused about, but have we forgotten about the Boston Braves era? The Braves used to play in Boston from 1876 to 1952. This doesn't have a lot of relevance in 2025, but both teams were "Original 16" franchises as well. The best thing to watch this series will be the pitching matchup between 2024 Cy Young winner Chris Sale for the Braves, and 2025 Cy Young contender Garrett Crochet for the Red Sox. This series will just be a clash of two classics, two historically significant teams with a history of intense competition. 

15. Colorado Rockies vs Arizona Diamondbacks

This rivalry is a huge question mark. They're both fairly new and kind of close, but other than that there is not much history apart from when they went at it in 2007, and that they are in the same division. In 2007, the Diamondbacks won the NL West and then the Rockies swept them in the NLCS. Then, they met during the 2017 post-season in a wild card game. Corbin Carroll is off to a hot start and will get to prey on the Rockies pitchers which hold the worst ERA in the league. Unsurprisingly, the Diamondbacks have won 19 out of the 26 games that they've faced the Rockies in the past two years. At this point, the Rockies are just fighting to be considered a major league team to most MLB fans.

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While some rivalries are stronger than others, this weekend will be full of drama, heat, and intricate storylines. Some fueds date back longer than others, while some have a hatred that cannot begin to be explained. Some star players have a lot in store for them this weekend, and the fan banter between teams will be heated more than ever. Happy Rivalry Weekend!