As the Cubs open their home slate in Cactus League play Friday, it felt only natural to peak ahead at the calendar and look at the regular-season home schedule.

In a pivotal 2025 season, the Cubs have set lofty goals and have plenty of intriguing series at Wrigley Field as they look to meet their targets.

Let’s look at five of the most intriguing home series this season. These are listed in chronological order.

[ICYMI: Cubs single-game tickets went on sale today, buy your tickets today]

Diamondbacks — April 18-20

Quick trivia time — who had the most potent offense in MLB last season? The Dodgers? The Yankees? Maybe the Phillies or Orioles?

Nope, it was Arizona, who scored 886 runs last season, 44 more than the second-place Dodgers. They also finished second in baseball in team OPS, too. But Arizona was the odd man out in the playoff picture — their 89 wins equaled Atlanta and the Mets, but they missed out on the tiebreaker and stayed home in October.

This team has improved, adding ace Corbin Burnes to their pitching staff, making this a fun, early season series for the Cubs. Oh, and there’s a pretty sweet giveaway on April 19, a Pete Crow-Armstrong bobblehead.

[Cubs Spring Training Notebook: Injury updates, prospects shine in Cactus League opener]

Dodgers — April 22-23

Much of the talk this offseason surrounded Los Angeles’ might following a World Series title. They added free agent after free agent and questions surrounded the Dodgers — are they the modern-day Evil Empire?

That’s a different conversation for a different day, but having the opportunity to see stars like Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman is too good of a chance to pass up. Plus, if the Cubs are hopeful to make a deep run in the postseason, there’s no better measuring stick than the defending champs.

Reds — May 30-June 1

The Reds could be a sneaky pick to compete with the Cubs in the NL Central. They have plenty of young talent on both the positional side and pitching front. This series also represents the first time the Cubs will play a home series against a division foe.

It must be noted this series is loaded with fun promotional giveaways, too. On Saturday, May 31, the Cubs are giving out a “Dansby Swanson Flow Headband” and on Sunday, June 1, there’s a Shota Imanaga bobblehead.

[MORE: Why infielder Justin Turner chose to sign with the Cubs]

Royals — July 21-23

Let’s have some more trivia fun. Who finished second in FanGraphs’ Wins Above Replacement (fWAR) in 2024? Aaron Judge? Shohei Ohtani? Juan Soto? Vladimir Guerrero Jr?

Nope, it was the Royals’ blossoming superstar Bobby Witt Jr., who posted a whopping 10.4 fWAR, second to Judge (11.2). Witt quietly had a 30-30 season, finished second in AL MVP voting was an All-Star and won a Silver Slugger and Gold Glove award.

He’s the type of player you want to see in person, and he won’t return to Wrigley until 2027.

Mets — Sept. 23-25

Like the Dodgers, the Mets have stockpiled their team with talent the last two offseasons. But they took it to another level this winter, when they gave Juan Soto the largest contract in the sport’s history.

Soto is on a Hall-of-Fame trajectory and this series could have massive implications for the postseason. The Mets should be a force in the National League and both teams could be either playing for their postseason lives or fighting for better seeding.