Orioles announce 2013 schedule

Season opens at Tampa Bay April 2, home opener slated for April 5 vs. Minnesota The Orioles today announced they will open the 2013 season at Tampa Bay before beginning their 22nd season at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 5 against the Minnesota Twins in a short three-game homestand. The Orioles will play each of their AL East rivals three times at Oriole Park, with 10 games each against the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox and nine games each against the Tampa Bay Rays and the Toronto Blue Jays. The Yankees will visit Baltimore May 20-22, June 28-30 and September 9-12, while the Red Sox come to Charm City over Father's Day weekend June 13-16, July 26-28 and September 27-29. The Rays visit Baltimore April 16-18, May 17-19 and August 19-21 and the Blue Jays visit April 22-24, July 12-14 and September 24-26. The Houston Astros will make their first visit to Oriole Park as members of the American League July 30-August 1, while the Orioles will visit Houston June 4-6. The 2013 Interleague schedule features visits to Baltimore by the Los Angeles Dodgers (April 19-21), San Diego Padres (May 14-15), Washington Nationals (May 29-30), and Colorado Rockies (August 16-18). The Orioles will visit Washington (May 27-28), San Diego (August 6-7), San Francisco (August 9-11) and Arizona (August 12-14) as part of Interleague Play. Baltimore will host the rest of the AL once: Minnesota Twins (April 5-7), Kansas City Royals (May 7-9), Detroit Tigers (May 31-June 2), Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (June 10-12), Cleveland Indians (June 24-27), Texas Rangers (July 8-11), Seattle Mariners (August 2-4), Oakland Athletics (August 23-25) and Chicago White Sox (September 5-8). The Orioles will play 16 home games in June, their busiest month at Oriole Park. Overall, the Birds will play 49 of the 96 games prior to the All-Star break at home. They have two nine-game homestands (April 16-24 against Tampa Bay, Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto and August 16-25 against Colorado, Tampa Bay and Oakland). The Orioles will have two road trips of 10 or more games, as they embark on an 11-game journey to Oakland, Seattle and Los Angeles (AL) from April 25-May 5 and a 10-game, 11-day journey to Toronto, Boston and Tampa Bay September 13-23. The team also has a nine-game trip to Boston, New York and Cleveland August 27-September 4. The complete 2013 schedule is below, with times to be announced at a later date.