10 of the most intriguing series coming up this week

Opening Weekend has come and gone, and the first full week of the MLB season has arrived. This is what we look forward to: Seven straight days on the calendar, Monday through Sunday, with baseball from end to end.

There were a lot of good candidates for this list of the 10 most intriguing series this week. So many, in fact, that we added a stipulation: Only one series per team could be included.

With that in mind, here are the top 10 matchups to watch.

1. Astros at Rangers
4 games (Friday-Monday)

You might remember these squads from such fierce competitions as the 2023 AL West race and the 2023 AL Championship Series. The Astros narrowly won the former, via tiebreaker, as both teams finished 90-72. But the Rangers got the last laugh in a seesaw-like ALCS, going up 2-0 on the road before losing three straight at home and finally mashing their way to victory in Games 6 and 7 at Minute Maid Park. (And yes, things got a bit testy along the way.) Both clubs (also the past two World Series champs) figure to be right back in the mix in 2024 -- though the Mariners may have something to say about it, too -- and this series might be an early barometer of how it could all shake out.

2. Giants at Dodgers
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)

Dodgers-Giants speaks for itself, but this NL West battle may have a bit of extra juice this year after Los Angeles beat out San Francisco (among other suitors) to land both Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The Giants still had a busy offseason, though, reeling in Jung Hoo Lee, Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, Jorge Soler and Jordan Hicks. Even last year, they played their archrivals tough, going 6-7 and being outscored by only two runs.

3. Blue Jays at Yankees
3 games (Friday-Sunday)

Is one or both of these teams going to challenge the reigning AL East champion Orioles? Even if not, they could wind up battling each other for a Wild Card spot. The Blue Jays, who featured one of the best starting rotations in the Majors in 2023, will get their first look at the new dynamic duo in the Bronx, with Juan Soto joining Aaron Judge in the middle of the Yankees’ lineup.

4. D-backs at Braves
3 games (Friday-Sunday)

Here we have a confrontation between the best team in the 2023 regular season and the team that shocked baseball by claiming the NL pennant. Atlanta won 20 more games than Arizona (104 to 84), but the D-backs won nine more in the playoffs (10 to one), including an NLCS triumph over the Phillies club that eliminated the Braves a round earlier. Both squads are looking good for 2024, with Ronald Acuña Jr. and Corbin Carroll promising one of the best outfield matchups in the sport.

5. Reds at Phillies
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)

Could this be an NL postseason preview? If things come together for the Reds in 2024, it just might. For now, this will be a good challenge for a Cincinnati squad featuring a ton of young talent to go up against a veteran Phillies group full of established stars. How will the Reds’ pitching hold up against the likes of Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner and Bryce Harper taking their cuts at Citizens Bank Park?

6. Royals at Orioles
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)

The Orioles are an example of just how much can change in a year. They rode a cascade of young talent to a jump of 29 wins from 2021 (59) to ‘22 (83) and then a jump of 18 more wins from ‘22 to ‘23 (101). That’s the sort of path the Royals are looking to follow, coming off a 56-win campaign. While Kansas City can’t match Baltimore’s stockpile of prospects, it does have a young franchise cornerstone in Bobby Witt Jr. The Royals also were aggressive in adding veteran help this offseason and play in an AL Central that could provide an opening for an underdog to grab a playoff spot.

7. Cardinals at Padres
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)

If there’s a theme to this pairing, it would be “Leave last year in the past.” The Cardinals made the playoffs every year from 2019-22. The Padres made it twice in that span, reaching the NLCS in ‘22. Both clubs, especially San Diego, entered last season with high expectations. Instead, things fell apart. But a new season offers a clean slate and a new opportunity. Both teams overhauled their pitching staffs over the winter and former Cardinals manager Mike Schildt took the helm in San Diego following Bob Melvin’s jump to San Francisco. Nolan Arenado, Xander Bogaerts, Paul Goldschmidt, Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. still anchor these lineups. It remains to be seen if better things are ahead for either team, but this could be one small step toward an answer.

8. Twins at Brewers
2 games (Tuesday-Wednesday)

Here we have two reigning Central division champions who could have bumpy roads to a repeat. Both teams saw some key departures in the offseason and are mostly trying to fill those gaps with internal options and untested young talent. There will be a lot to prove in both Milwaukee and Minnesota in 2024, but also a lot of up-and-coming players to watch, including the Brewers’ 20-year-old top prospect Jackson Chourio, who made his debut on Opening Day.

9. Red Sox at Angels
3 games (Friday-Sunday)

This will be the conclusion of a 10-game West Coast road trip for the Red Sox. That’s a challenging way to begin a season for a club facing an uphill battle in the rough-and-tumble AL East. The Angels, similarly, have been widely counted out, given the loss of Ohtani and the presence of the Astros, Mariners and Rangers in their division. (Though a Mike Trout rebound season would be a big boost.) Neither of these clubs has the benefit of much margin for error, so a solid start will be critical to keeping them in the mix.

10. Tigers at Mets
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)

Here are two more teams that will have to prove they belong in the contending conversation this year. The Tigers are trying to end a nine-season playoff drought -- tied with the Angels for MLB’s current longest -- and hoping that a young core is finally beginning to come together. The Mets, like the Cardinals and Padres, saw high expectations collapse in 2023. It’s a less start-studded roster this year in Queens, but the Mets, under new leadership in the front office (David Stearns) and dugout (Carlos Mendoza) still have the pieces to make some noise.

Honorable mentions: Rangers at Rays (Monday-Wednesday), Blue Jays at Astros (Monday-Wednesday), Yankees at D-backs (Monday-Wednesday), Guardians at Mariners (Monday-Wednesday), Dodgers at Cubs (Friday-Sunday)