Spring Breakout is back. Fans will once again have a chance to watch their favorite team’s top prospects this spring, and not just getting scattered playing time in spring training games. MLB will hold the second annual Spring Breakout — a four-day, 16-game prospect showcase — this spring and feature the top young players in the sport in head-to-head games. Every MLB team has built a roster of prospects and play a game against another team’s prospects.
“Spring Breakout will provide a new opportunity to showcase the future stars of the game as they continue on their journey to the Major Leagues,” MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement last year. “Our fans will get unique opportunities to meet our best prospects, get autographs, and see the next generation of Major Leaguers up close. We are thrilled that Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball and all of our Clubs are working closer than ever to grow the game and to shine a brighter light on our future All-Stars.”
The games are showcases — this is not a tournament and no “champion” will be crowned — and because there are an odd number of teams in Arizona and Florida, the Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals will each play two games. Most Spring Breakout games will be played as part of a doubleheader with the day’s regularly scheduled spring training game.
Spring Breakout will take place from March 13-16 and the games will be broadcast on MLB’s digital platforms (MLB.tv, etc.), MLB Network, and local networks. Here’s what you need to know about Spring Breakout.
Schedule
Here is this year’s Spring Breakout schedule. The fun starts Thursday evening and continues right through Sunday.
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Thurs. March 13 |
7:05 p.m. ET |
FanDuel Sports Sun, NESN, MLBN, Rays.com |
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Thurs., March 13 |
9:05 p.m. ET |
Cubs at Dodgers |
MLB.com |
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Fri., March 14 |
12:10 p.m. ET |
FanDuel Sports Midwest, Marlins.com |
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Fri., March 14 |
1:05 p.m. ET |
NBC Sports Philadelphia+, MLBN |
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Fri., March 14 |
2:05 p.m. ET |
Nationals at Astros |
MLB.com |
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Fri., March 14 |
5:40 p.m. ET |
SDPA |
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Fri., March 14 |
8:05 p.m. ET |
CLEG, Root Sports Northwest, CleGuardians.com, MLBN |
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| Fri., March 14 | 8:10 p.m. ET | Royals at Diamondbacks | MLB.com |
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Sat., March 15 |
1:07 p.m. ET |
Sportsnet+, MLBN | |
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Sat., March 15 |
6:05 p.m. ET |
MLBN |
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Sat., March 15 |
8:05 p.m. ET |
MLB.com |
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Sat., March 15 |
9:05 p.m. ET |
Angels at Cubs |
Marquee+, MLBN |
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Sun., March 16 |
4:05 p.m. ET |
MLBN |
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| Sun., March 16 | 5:05 p.m. ET | Mets at Nationals | MASN |
| Sun., March 16 | 5:04 p.m. ET | Rockies at White Sox | CHSN |
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Sun., March 16 |
7:40 p.m. ET |
MLBN |
Rosters
Spring Breakout rosters were revealed Thursday, March 6, and any player with MLB rookie eligibility can participate. In other words, players who do not have 130 at-bats, 50 innings, or 45 days on active MLB rosters are eligible. Because of that, there are players with some big-league experience on Spring Breakout rosters. They’re all technically rookies though.
Some notables participating in Spring Breakout include Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony, baseball’s best prospect, and Guardians infielder Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft. Others notable Spring Breakout participants include infielder Carson Williams (Rays), outfielder Max Clark (Tigers), and righties Chase Burns (Reds) and Chase Dollander (Rockies). The full Spring Breakout rosters are available here:
Rules
Because Spring Breakout is a showcase, MLB has loosened the rules a bit, and the league is also using the series as an opportunity to showcase some rule changes that may be coming to the game in the future. Here’s what you need to know about the rules for this new spring prospect showcase.
Seven-inning games: Like the annual Futures Game, Spring Breakout games will be seven innings, not nine.
No extra innings: There will be no extra innings of any kind (regular or with the automatic runner at second base). Spring Breakout games can end in ties.
Strike zone challenge system: The ABS challenge system has been in use throughout spring training and that will be the case in Spring Breakout as well. Each team will have two opportunities to challenge a ball-strike call throughout the game, and you retain your challenge if it’s successful.
No three-batter minimum: There is no three-batter minimum for Spring Breakout, which will allow more pitchers to get into the game and help avoid elevated pitch counts.
Pitcher re-entry: The pitcher re-entry rule will be in use. That allows a pitcher to exit the game mid-inning, then come back in to start the next inning. This rule is used in spring training to prevent pitchers from running up dangerously high pitch counts in an inning when they’re still building up for the season.
