Introduction: The Question That Fans Ask Every Spring
Every spring, as pitchers and catchers report and spring training heats up, fans ask a simple question: How many games are there in an MLB season? The number of games in an MLB season tells you the rhythm of the year, how teams chase the postseason, and how every win or loss stacks up across a long grind. Understanding that number — and why it’s set the way it is — helps you follow the schedule, anticipate doubleheaders, and make sense of shortened seasons or unusual schedules caused by lockouts, strikes, or pandemics.
How Many Games Are in an MLB Regular Season?
As of the modern era, the standard MLB regular season is 162 games per team. That means each of the 30 Major League Baseball teams plays 162 scheduled regular-season games. This figure measures only the regular season; postseason games (Wild Card, Division Series, League Championship Series, and World Series) are additional and vary by team depending on how far they advance.
The 162-game schedule is part of the MLB schedule and applies uniformly across the league during a full, normal year. When you hear commentators referencing “a 162-game season,” they mean the regular-season slate every team aims to complete.
Why 162 Games? A Short History of the Schedule
The move to 162 games has historical roots. For most of baseball’s early modern era, teams played 154 games. That changed in the 1960s when both leagues expanded and adjusted their schedules.
- Before the 1960s: Most seasons were 154 games per team.
- 1961: The American League expanded and moved to a 162-game schedule for the first time.
- 1962: The National League followed, and 162 games became the standard for both leagues.
Why this number specifically? Expansion increased the number of opponents and travel patterns, so the schedule lengthened to maintain a balanced number of home and away games while ensuring rivalries and divisional matchups fit logically. The 162-game season struck a balance between revenue, tradition, and player workload.
When the Schedule Changes: Shortened and Split Seasons
While 162 games is the standard, there have been notable exceptions. Labor disputes, strikes, and global events have led to shortened seasons, split seasons, or compressed schedules.
- 1972: A players’ strike led to missed games early in the season; some teams played fewer games.
- 1981: A midseason strike produced a split-season format with a first-half and second-half division winner.
- 1994-95: The 1994 strike canceled the World Series; 1995 began late and teams played 144 games instead of 162.
- 2020: The COVID-19 pandemic shortened the regular season to just 60 games, radically changing team strategies and the value of each contest.
- 2022: A labor dispute caused a delayed start, but the league worked to preserve the full 162-game slate by rescheduling and reducing off-days.
Shortened seasons affect statistics, playoff races, and the historical comparability of records. A 60-game season makes each game carry far greater weight than a 162-game grind.
How the Schedule Works: Balanced vs. Unbalanced, Divisions and Interleague Play
The structure of the MLB schedule determines who teams play and how often. Key components include:
- Divisional games: Teams play the most games against divisional rivals, which magnifies the importance of division races.
- Interleague play: Introduced in 1997 and expanded since, interleague games pit American League teams against National League teams during the regular season.
- Balanced vs. unbalanced schedule: MLB has shifted between approaches. A fully balanced schedule would have every team playing every other team equally, but unbalanced schedules emphasize divisional rivalries and regional matchups to reduce travel and increase meaningful games.
Recent seasons have seen attempts to balance fairness with travel realities. A typical 162-game breakdown includes many divisional series, several interleague series, and matchups across the league designed to create a compelling season for fans and broadcasters.
Practical Impacts: Player Workload, Spring Training, and Doubleheaders
Playing 162 games places demands on rosters, bullpen management, and player health. That reality shapes many facets of the baseball year:
- Spring training: Preseason games prepare pitchers and position players for the rigors of a long season. Managers use spring training to set rotations and roster depth before the 162-game grind.
- Rotation and bullpen management: A five-man rotation and planned rest days are essential across 162 games to avoid injury and fatigue.
- Doubleheaders: Rainouts and travel complications often result in doubleheaders — two games on the same day — which test roster flexibility. In recent years, MLB has adjusted doubleheader rules (e.g., shortened games during certain seasons) to manage player workload.
Tip: For fantasy baseball players, understanding the 162-game rhythm helps predict pitching starts, bullpen fatigue, and lineup rest days throughout the season.
Examples: How Different Seasons Look in Practice
Concrete examples help illustrate how the number of games in an MLB season matters in practice.
- 162-game season (normal year): A team plays roughly 81 home and 81 away games. The long season allows teams to recover from slumps and gives a fuller sample for player statistics.
- 60-game season (2020): Every start was magnified. Teams that hot-started or sustained short-term success made the playoffs unexpectedly, and statistical leaders came from a much smaller sample.
- Split-season (1981): Two separate champions were declared for the halves of the season, producing unusual playoff qualifications and debates about fairness.
Historical perspective: Before 1961/62 when 162 games became standard, 154-game seasons meant different pacing and record comparisons. When comparing single-season records, context matters: whether the season was 154, 162, or an outlier like 60 games.
How Many Games in the Postseason?
The postseason is separate from regular-season games and is not included in the 162-game count. How many postseason games a team plays depends entirely on how far they advance:
- Wild Card Series: Best-of-three in recent formats (varies by year).
- Division Series (LDS): Best-of-five, up to five games.
- League Championship Series (LCS): Best-of-seven, up to seven games.
- World Series: Best-of-seven, up to seven games.
Example: A team sweeping the Wild Card and winning every series in the minimum games could play as few as 12 postseason games (3 + 5 + 4?), depending on format; if everything goes the distance, the postseason could add significantly more games to a team’s calendar.
Common Questions About the Schedule and Tiebreakers
Some practical items fans often wonder about:
- What happens to missed games? Rainouts are usually rescheduled as part of the doubleheader or made up later. If a missed game has no bearing on playoff qualification, it might not be made up.
- Are tie-breaker games used? Historically, MLB used Game 163 tiebreakers to resolve division ties. Recent rule changes favor statistical tiebreakers or head-to-head records, but practices evolve.
- Does every team play exactly 162 games? In a normal season, yes, but exceptions happen during shortened seasons or when games are canceled and deemed unnecessary to reschedule.
Tips for Fans: Following the Season, Fantasy, and Betting
Knowing the structure of the 162-game regular season gives you advantages as a fan or a fantasy manager:
- Track schedule density: Long road trips and stretches without off-days can affect pitcher availability.
- Monitor doubleheaders and bullpen usage: Managers often shuffle lineups and resting regulars around doubleheaders, which can impact fantasy value.
- Contextualize stats: Compare player numbers by accounting for season length — a 60-game slugging title in 2020 differs in weight from a 162-game leader in 2019.
- Watch for roster expansions: September call-ups historically expanded rosters late in the season and impacted matchups; roster rules have changed in modern years, so check league updates.
FAQ: Five Common Questions About the Number of Games in an MLB Season
1. How many games do MLB teams play each season?
In a regular, full season each MLB team plays 162 games. This refers to the regular season only and does not include postseason games, which vary based on playoff advancement.
2. Has the MLB season always been 162 games?
No. Teams played 154 games for much of baseball history. The American League moved to 162 games in 1961 and the National League followed in 1962 after league expansion, which is when 162 became standard.
3. What caused shortened seasons like 2020?
Shortened seasons have resulted from labor disputes (strikes or lockouts), natural disruptions, and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The 2020 season was reduced to 60 games for health and safety reasons.
4. Are postseason games part of the 162-game count?
No. The 162 games describe the regular season only. Postseason games are additional and depend on playoff format and how deep a team goes into the playoffs.
5. Can games be canceled and not made up?
Yes. If a missed game (due to weather or other reasons) has no impact on playoff spots or standings, MLB sometimes chooses not to make it up. Otherwise, teams will typically reschedule via doubleheaders or open dates.
Conclusion: Why the Number Matters
The number of games in an MLB season — most commonly 162 — defines the cadence of baseball. It affects strategy, player health, statistics, fantasy outcomes, and the drama of pennant races. While historical seasons and exceptional years have produced different totals (154, 144, 60), the modern 162-game slate remains the benchmark fans and analysts use to evaluate teams and players over a long haul. Understanding that number, and the reasons it has changed at times, helps any fan appreciate the game’s rhythms and the significance of each win or loss across a full MLB season.
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