MLB Rivalry weekend: Who has the most to prove?

30 teams, 15 matchups with plenty of history between them all. From inter-city series to in-state battles, Major League Baseball’s first-ever Rivalry Weekend will have plenty in store, but some players and teams will have more to prove than others.

Which of them has a lot on the line? We’ll find out this weekend, so here are a few players and teams to watch as it develops.

Juan Soto, New York Mets

After signing his 15-year, $765 million contract with the Mets in the offseason, Soto will make his return to Yankee Stadium after reaching his second career World Series as the Mets face the Yankees in what’s shaping up to be a great Subway Series.

In an interview with Jon Heyman of the New York Post on Thursday, Soto said he expects it to be 50,000 in the stadium against him. It very well may be so for the player who finished third in AL MVP voting last season.

However, Soto has been tearing the cover off the ball in May, slugging .667 with five home runs in the month’s first half.

If anyone can add to such a streak by taking advantage of the short porch in right field in Yankee Stadium, it’s Soto. Just don’t expect a warm welcome for him in his quest to prove he’s worth that contract, though.

The Minnesota Twins’ bats

The Twins extended their win streak, which dates back to May 3, to 11 games on Thursday. Six of those wins came against the Baltimore Orioles, whom they swept in the season series against.

Minnesota now travels east to Milwaukee for the Border Battle, a series that Minnesota hasn’t won since 2021, and they may have to work hard to win without two of their most important hitters.

On Thursday afternoon in Baltimore, Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa collided and consequently landed in concussion protocol.

Without them, they’ll need someone to step up, as Harrison Bader is the only Minnesota batter besides Buxton with at least 90 at-bats and an OPS above .725.

Chicago White Sox fans

Robert Prevost was elected on May 8 as the 267th pope of the Catholic Church. He who is now known as Pope Leo XIV attended Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, which featured his hometown Chicago White Sox.

Since then, Southside has taken advantage of his fandom both on and off the field.

Team merchandise that puts the Pope in the spotlight has already surfaced and the team won back-to-back series for the first time this season since the white smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel.

With the Sox set to face the Cubs in the first half of this season’s Crosstown Classic this weekend, the pressure’s on the fanbase to challenge their counterparts up north in Wrigleyville for control of the Windy City.

Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers

The three-time Cy Young winner is slated to begin his 18th major league season on Saturday at Dodger Stadium as he faces the Angels after missing the first month of the season rehabbing from shoulder surgery.

Kershaw signed a one-year, $7.5 million contract to stay in Dodger blue for 2025 and will seek to give the pitching staff a shot in the arm even though it might not need one.

With starters Roki Sasaki, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow all on the injured list, someone has to step up to take pressure off of Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin and the rest of the Dodgers' rotation.

L.A. used bullpen games often down the stretch last season en route to their title, but it’s easy to say they don’t want to have to use them as much again.

The main Rivalry Weekend games to watch are the second game between the Atlanta Braves and the Boston Red Sox at 7:15 p.m. EST Saturday on Fox and the finale between the Mets and Yankees at 7:00 p.m. Sunday on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball.

Owen Klein is a fourth-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email ojk5092@psu.edu.