Yesterday, the Washington Nationals announced that they will play the Red Sox at the United States Naval Academy on April 1 as an exhibition game
Mostly every season since 2008, the Washington Nationals have played two exhibition games to get ready for the regular season. Now, for this season and the next three seasons, one of those exhibition games is going to be extremely unique.
Yesterday afternoon, the Washington Nationals announced that they’ll play two exhibition games against the Red Sox this season. On March 31, the two teams will play at Nats Park. Then, on Saturday April 1, the two teams will play in Annapolis, Maryland at the United States Naval Academy as part of the Naval Academy Classic at Max Bishop Stadium:
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In addition to playing the exhibition at the U.S. Naval Academy this season, Mark Zuckerman of MASN Sports tweeted that the Nats have a deal in place to play exhibition games for the next three seasons, but those games are only for the members of the Navy:
#Nats have deal to play exhibition games at Naval Academy for next 3 years. No public tickets, only complimentary to members of Navy.
— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) February 9, 2017
It is always fascinating to see the atmosphere at these games that are designed solely for a military audience. While you won’t be able to attend the game unless you are a member of the Navy, the game will be on ESPN at 2 p.m ET that afternoon. The games in the future (2018 and 2019) do not have an opponent for the Nats just yet.
Last season, baseball played a regular season game on a military base when the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves played a Sunday night game in Fort Bragg down in North Carolina. Miami ended up winning that game 5-2 but it was great to watch the military personnel enjoy that game.
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This is a fantastic idea by the Washington Nationals because it allows for them to thank the Navy for the great service they give to our country and provide a small distraction on their baseball field. Plus, it is a unique way to prep for the regular season, which will take place two days later.