The Grand Canyon Antelopes are among the teams participating in the 2026 MLB Desert Invitational, a collegiate baseball tournament at stadiums across the Phoenix area.
The seventh edition of the Desert Invitational will include Air Force, Grand Canyon, Iowa, Kansas State, Nebraska, Northeastern, Penn State and UConn.
Fourteen matchups in a round-robin style tournament will take place at Brazell Field at GCU Ballpark, Goodyear Ballpark, Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, Scottsdale Stadium and Sloan Park from Feb. 13-16.
Air Force, Iowa, Northeastern and Penn State will appear in the tournament for the first time, while Kansas State, Nebraska and UConn appear at the event for a second time.
Grand Canyon will not only compete for a fourth straight year but expose junior infielder Troy Sanders to a national audience. Sanders is one of three alumni from the MLB Develops program playing in the 2026 tournament. Kansas State sophomore utility player Donte Lewis and Nebraska freshman catcher Jeter Worthley also participated in the league’s sponsored youth development program.
Three games in the Desert Invitational will be broadcast on MLB Network, including the Antelopes’ matchup against the Nittany Lions at 1 p.m. on Feb. 14.
Since the expansion of the tournament’s field in 2023, the Desert Invitational has seen at least two participating teams make it to the NCAA Tournament. Kansas State, Nebraska and Northeastern all appeared in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
All eight teams in this year’s event combine for 17 berths and three regional appearances since 2020.
2026 MLB Desert Invitational schedule
*Games in bold will be aired live on MLB Network
|
Date |
Time |
Teams |
Location |
|
Feb. 13 |
1 p.m. |
Kansas State vs. Iowa |
Goodyear Ballpark |
|
Feb. 13 |
6 p.m. |
Penn State vs. Air Force |
Goodyear Ballpark |
|
Feb. 13 |
6 p.m. |
Nebraska vs. UConn |
SRF at Talking Stick |
|
Feb. 13 |
6 p.m. |
Grand Canyon vs. Northeastern |
Grand Canyon University |
|
Date |
Time |
Teams |
Location |
|
Feb. 14 |
1 p.m. |
Grand Canyon vs. Penn State |
SRF at Talking Stick |
|
Feb. 14 |
5 p.m. |
Kansas State vs. UConn |
Scottsdale Stadium |
|
Feb. 14 |
6 p.m. |
Air Force vs. Iowa |
SRF at Talking Stick |
|
Feb. 14 |
6:30 p.m. |
Northeastern vs. Nebraska |
Sloan Park |
|
Date |
Time |
Teams |
Location |
|
Feb. 15 |
12 p.m. |
Penn State vs. Kansas State |
Sloan Park |
|
Feb. 15 |
1 p.m. |
Northeastern vs. Iowa |
SRF at Talking Stick |
|
Feb. 15 |
5:30 p.m. |
Grand Canyon vs. Nebraska |
Sloan Park |
|
Feb. 15 |
6 p.m. |
UConn vs. Air Force |
SRF at Talking Stick |
|
Date |
Time |
Teams |
Location |
|
Feb. 16 |
1 p.m. |
Air Force vs. Kansas State |
Sloan Park |
|
Feb. 16 |
1 p.m. |
Nebraska vs. Stanford |
SRF at Talking Stick |
