MLB is ushering in a new television era for baseball fans, as the league has reportedly landed new media deals with NBC, Netflix and ESPN, according to The Athletic.
Here's a quick breakdown of what each deal looks like, as well as what it means for MLB fans.
MLB welcomes back old friend in NBC
Watching baseball on NBC was commonplace in the 1980s and '90s, and the history between league and network dates all the way back to the 1940s. And while NBC was last seen on the nationally-televised baseball stage during the 1999 World Series, the network is officially back into the fold when it comes to broadcasting MLB. According to Marchand, NBC will dole out almost $200 million per season to MLB for the rights to broadcast Sunday Night Baseball, as well as the first round of the postseason, which includes four wild-card round series. Much like for NBA fans, watching baseball on a Sunday night on NBC is bound to deliver a nostalgic feel. Given that NBC also broadcasts football and basketball on Sunday nights, any television conflicts with those two sports will result in MLB games shifting over to NBC's streaming service, Peacock. The wild-card round games are reportedly expected to be divvied up between NBC and Peacock.
MLB welcomes new friend in Netflix
Netflix, which has entered the sports streaming world in recent years to mixed results, adds baseball to its catalogue in MLB's new deal. Per Marchand, Netflix will pay MLB roughly $50 million per year to stream the standalone Opening Day prime time game, the Home Run Derby and “Field of Dreams” game. This means MLB fans looking to watch Yankees-Giants in primetime on March 25, as well as the Phillies-Twins in the Field of Dreams game in August of 2026 (previously on Fox), will be tuning into Netflix.
MLB (sort of) reconciles with ESPN
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred had seemingly signaled a break-up with ESPN in the form of a memo, citing the network's “minimal coverage” of baseball. But the two sides are back together, albeit with a different look. While ESPN won't be on the nationally-televised baseball stage anymore in the form of Sunday Night Baseball, the wild-card round and the Home Run Derby, the network still ended up finding value in the new deal. According to Marchand, ESPN will still be on the national TV scene in the form of 30 exclusive weeknight games during the season. Additionally, ESPN will effectively pay MLB $1.65 billion over three seasons—the going price it would have paid for Sunday Night Baseball—for the MLB.TV package. This means that ESPN will control the rights for all 30 teams‘ out-of-market games, as well as the in-market game rights to six teams: the Cleveland Guardians, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies, and Seattle Mariners. Marchand reports that ESPN has not yet decided how it wil sell MLB.TV, but it is expected to be at the same $150-per-year price tag that consumers had been paying when it was under league control.
More MLB on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as What MLB‘s Reported New TV Deals With NBC, Netflix, ESPN Look Like.
