4 takeaways from 2025 Marlins schedule release

If you're a Miami Marlins fan, it took only a week or two into the 2024 season for you to start looking ahead to 2025. There is nowhere to go but up from this historically bad campaign.

Some aspects of the Marlins regular season schedule were known in advance:

• Matchups against each of the other 29 teams
• Home and away series against each National League opponent
• 13 games against each NL East rival

On Thursday afternoon, we got more of the specifics.

Run it back vs. the Bucs

Just like in 2024, the Marlins will begin next season by hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates for a four-game set.

It's only the second time in franchise history that the Marlins are hosting the same opponent on Opening Day in back-to-back years (previously vs. the Chicago Cubs in 1997 and 1998). MLB is giving Miami Opening Day baseball for the ninth time in a 12-year span.

The 2024 season-opening starting pitchers were Jesús Luzardo and Mitch Keller. Health permitting, 2025 should feature two legitimate NL Cy Young award candidates: Sandy Alcantara and Paul Skenes.

Juiced up Citrus Series

From 2022-2024, the Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays were limited to four head-to-head meetings (two each at loanDepot park and Tropicana Field). The Fish have been grateful for that because they've been dominated, winning only one Citrus Series game during that period (an Alcantara complete game).

These series will be expanded to three games apiece in 2025. The Rays visit the Marlins from May 16-18 as part of MLB's new "Rivalry Week" initiative, then the Fish return the favor from June 6-8.

Extended stay in Chicago

Shoutout to Fish On First staffer Alex Krutchik for bringing this to my attention.

The Marlins visit the Chicago White Sox (May 9-11) and Chicago Cubs (May 12-14) for consecutive series. Assuming they hit the road for that trip immediately after completing their prior homestand on May 7, they could be spending seven straight nights in the same hotel! That is a team travel director's dream. I suppose it's also a dream for any Illinois-based Fish fans.

Yankees attendance boost

The Marlins perennially have the lowest home attendance in the National League. That was the case in 2023 despite selling 100,001 tickets for their August 11-13 series against the New York Yankees.

Next year, it's their turn to host the Bronx Bombers again. Conveniently, the series falls on a weekend during the summer. The August 1-3 dates do not overlap with any significant South Florida basketball, hockey and football events. Even if the Marlins prove to be completely non-competitive, expect an influx of Yankee fans to make it the best-attended series of the season.

Scheduled start times for 2025 regular season games won't be confirmed until much later. For reference, in 2024, Marlins Monday-Thursday home night games have been at 6:40 p.m., Fridays have been at 7:10 p.m., Saturdays have typically been at 4:10 p.m. and Sundays have typically been at 1:40 p.m.

Also, a reminder that due to humidity, the loanDepot park retractable roof stays closed with the exception of some March/April and September games.