Nats announce 2021 schedule, Opening Day April 1 vs. Mets originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Spring training is less than one week away and baseball season is officially upon us.

The Washington Nationals announced their full 162-game 2021 schedule on Thursday, which begins on April 1.

The Nats will face the New York Mets on Opening Day as part of a six-game homestand to begin the season with a pair of three-game series against N.L. East rivals, one versus New York and the other against the Atlanta Braves.

The 2021 schedule for all teams, not just Washington, includes multiple extended homestands and road trips as Major League Baseball tries to limit the amount of travel during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

As far as interleague play goes, Washington faces the American League East this season alongside their annual home-and-home with the Orioles. The Nationals played all five AL East teams in 2020, too, as part of the league’s condensed 60-game schedule.

Washington’s longest road trip comes in the final week of September. The Nationals will be away from the nation’s capital for 10 days before returning for their regular season finale, a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox.