It’s opening week for the Royals, and Rock the Parkway is Saturday: KC’s Next Play
Baseball has (nearly) arrived.
The Royals’ season opener is this week, against a familiar foe with a new name. And the man pitching for KC will be none other than Zack Greinke, who left the organization more than a decade ago to try his luck elsewhere.
But it’s not just baseball this week. College basketball continues to command a lot of our attention this weekend, with the women’s national championship set for Sunday night and the men’s finale on Monday.
Here’s a look at all that and more in our weekly Next Play preview of key sports events around Kansas City and beyond.
The championship games
How many NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball games have been played since the start of the 2021-22 season?
Answer: lots.
For the women, only one remains. The championship game tips off tonight (Sunday) at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Just one left for the men, too: The men’s title showdown is Monday night at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
Opening Day for Royals
The Royals’ home opener is Thursday against the Cleveland Guardians. First pitch at Kauffman Stadium is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. Central Time.
The Royals have their first scheduled off-day the following day, then resume their series with the Guardians — in their first season dubbed thusly since they changed their name from the Indians — on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
Once they finish up with Cleveland, the Royals motor east down Interstate 70 for a Tuesday-Wednesday series against the Cardinals in St. Louis.
KC soccer updates, part I
After a week away, Kansas City’s Major League Soccer team returns home next weekend: Nashville at Sporting KC on Saturday. Game time is 7:30 p.m. at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kan.
The KC Current doesn’t play again until its next Challenge Cup match on April 15 — a 7:30 p.m. home game against the Houston Dash.
KC soccer updates, part II
Kansas City’s third pro soccer team, the Kansas City Comets, kicks off a playoff run next weekend in Dallas.
The Major Arena Soccer League’s postseason format sends the Comets on the road for the first game of a two-game series in which they’ll be the home team. The first leg will be played at the Sidekicks’ home venue on Saturday.
The second game is at Cable Dahmer Arena in Independence on Tuesday, April 12, with a mini-game to follow completion of that match, should KC and Dallas be tied through two games.
Rock the Parkway time
The annual Rock the Parkway half-marathon and 5K bills itself as “Kansas City’s largest half marathon,” and next weekend several thousand entrants will beat a scenic path down historic Ward Parkway.
The race has returned to its springtime slot after a pandemic-prompted cancellation in 2020 and rescheduling to August in 2021. The 2022 edition is set for Saturday, April 9, starting at 7:30 a.m.
Both events, the 5K and the 13.1-mile race, start and finish in front of the headquarters of the event’s host, Burns & McDonnell. Rock the Parkway is also partnered in a charitable way with Children’s Mercy. For more information, visit www.rocktheparkway.com.