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HOUSTON — The Houston Astros  announced their start times for the 2021 regular season.

The season begins on Opening Day April 1 at Oakland in a 9:07 p.m. matchup with the A’s. The 2021 Home Opener is scheduled April 8, also vs. the Athletics, which will begin at 7:10 p.m.

Information on fan attendance and ticketing for the 2021 season will be announced at a later date.

The 2021 season will be the 60th Major League season for the Houston franchise, which began in 1962 as the Colt .45s before becoming the Astros in 1965.

The 2021 schedule features many exciting matchups as several popular opponents will visit Minute Maid Park, including the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and Texas Rangers.

The 2021 schedule will once again feature 76 matchups vs. American League West opponents. The Astros, who finished second in the AL West in 2020 behind the A’s, will face Oakland nine times in Houston in 2021, including for the final three regular season games, Oct. 1-3.

The Tampa Bay Rays, who eliminated the Astros in a thrilling seven-game American League Championship Series last season, will also be in Houston on the final week of the 2021 season for a three-game series, Sept. 28-30.

The Astros and rival Texas Rangers will once again battle in the Lone Star Series for the Silver Boot, with Houston hosting the Rangers for three different series in 2021, totaling nine games at Minute Maid Park.

Two of those series will be on weekends (May 13-16, July 23-25). In each of the past four seasons (2017-20), the Astros have won the Lone Star Series.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, featuring one of baseball’s best players in Mike Trout and future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols, will visit Houston for four games in April (22-25),  three games in May (10-12) and three more in September (10-12).

Storied franchises

The defending World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers return to Houston for the second consecutive season for a two-game set, May 25-26. During that same homestand, the Boston Red Sox will also visit Minute Maid Park for a four-game series, May 31-June 3.

The New York Yankees will be in town for a three-game series over the weekend of July 9-11. In addition to being three of baseball’s most storied franchises, the Dodgers, Red Sox and Yankees have also been three of baseball’s most successful and star-studded teams in recent years.

For Interleague Play, the Astros face the NL West for the second consecutive season, with the San Diego Padres, Colorado Rockies, Arizona Diamondbacks and Dodgers scheduled to visit Houston in 2021.