The first week of the regular season is always an exciting time for baseball fans. Every team has a fresh start, a clean slate. There are a lot of exciting matchups this week, some more than others.

I’m here to give you some insight on the best matchups of the week and to let you know what games not to miss out on.

The first series that really jumps out at you kicks off the first game of the year. The defending World Series Champion San Francisco Giants will take on their rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Clayton Kershaw will be squaring off against Matt Cain. Just seeing those two names shows how great of a match up this will be. Not only will the first game be exciting the entire series should be a doozy.

Once Monday is over tuesday is set up nicely for some more good games. The best matchup of tuesday will feature the Tampa Bay Rays taking on the Baltimore Orioles. This is also a divisional matchup between two teams that could win the East. Jason Hammel will be starting for Baltimore while the ace David Price will take the mound for the Rays. I am really looking forward to this matchup.

Looking ahead to the weekend one series really sticks out and that is the Washington Nationals versus the Cincinnati Reds. What makes this series so exciting is that both of these teams are the favorites to win their respective divisions. Of the three weekend games that these two will square off in the sunday game seems the most intriguing. Sunday should feature Stephen Strasburg facing off against Johnny Cueto. Look for this to be a low scoring game with some spectacular plays in the field.

Opening week is jam packed full of great games, all it comes down to is what ones you want to watch. Sit back, kick your feet up and enjoy something we haven’t had in a long time, regular season baseball.