Pirates unveil 2021 schedule, featuring 162 games and openers against Chicago Cubs

One week after MLB announced the schedule for the 60-game 2020 season, the Pittsburgh Pirates released their 2021 schedule that will feature them playing against the Chicago Cubs on Opening Day on April 1 at Wrigley Field and in the home opener April 8 at PNC Park.

And this one involves 162 games.

It will mark the 22nd time the Pirates start their season against the Cubs — the first since 2011, which marked Clint Hurdle’s debut as manager and was highlighted by Neil Walker’s grand slam — and the fifth consecutive season the Pirates will start the season on the road.

The 2021 season will start with a six-game road trip, with three games at Chicago followed by three at Cincinnati before the Pirates return for their first homestand. They follow a three-game series with the Cubs with a four-game series against the San Diego Padres.

Once again, the Pirates will be matched in interleague play against the AL Central, including visits by the Kansas City Royals (April 27-28), Cleveland Indians (June 18-20), Chicago White Sox (June 22-23) and Detroit Tigers (September 6-8).

Other highlights of the 2021 schedule include a July 4 game against the Milwaukee Brewers as part of a seven-game homestand with the Brewers and Atlanta Braves, a six-game homestand featuring a three-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies (July 30-Aug. 1) and a nine-game homestand against the Detroit Tigers, Washington Nationals and Cincinnati Reds from Sept. 6-16, including a Labor Day game against Detroit.

2021. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.#LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/HZqqsI95ZL

— Pirates (@Pirates) July 9, 2020