Dodgers’ Ohtani and Yankees Judge win MLB MVP Award
The MVP of the baseball world has been decided. The Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani won the National League Award, and the Yankees’ Aaron Judge won the American League title again.
The way fans watch baseball games is about to change dramatically as Major League Baseball ditches the Band-Aid from its distribution model and steers toward a future where linear television and streaming coexist, even at the expense of both the sports league and consumers.
What’s the result? Welcome back, NBC. All is forgiven, ESPN. And with any luck, the word “buffering” won’t be on the lips of fans when Netflix enters the picture.
The league and its old and new distribution partners announced a broadcast agreement on Nov. 19 covering the 2026-28 season. Although various details and frameworks of the agreement have been reported in recent months, there are still many aspects that are difficult to understand for the average consumer.
What will it look like in March? From the most casual fan to the most hardcore, here are some details about the beginning of a new broadcast era for MLB.
NBC/Peacock: Sunday Night Baseball and Wild Card Round
This game of musical chairs moved into high gear in February, when ESPN terminated the final three years of its contract with MLB to broadcast its Sunday Night Baseball franchise and the four wild-card series that open the postseason.
The remainder of the deal is $1.65 billion over three years, which was agreed to before the cord-cutting crisis and the overall collapse of the cable model got even worse. ESPN seized the opportunity to escape.
Now, NBC has taken over the Sunday night series, and while it may be jarring to see baseball’s weekly national broadcast jewel transition from its original home on ESPN, older heads will recognize that NBC is baseball’s original home.
In the modern Nielsen era, NBC aired every World Series from 1968 to 1976, then alternated with ABC from 1990 to 1993 until CBS was the unfortunate primary rights holder for four years. NBC last faced MLB nationally in the 1999 World Series, after which Fox Sports acquired exclusive rights to the Fall Classic.
That won’t change for some time. Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery, or Turner as you may know it, will continue to be Major League Baseball’s primary partners, hosting one regular season game and one league championship series each year through 2028.
But after that, all bets are off, and it seems likely that the World Series rights will return to the market and be split among multiple rights holders in the near future.
For now? Baseball will be a staple of NBC’s Sunday night primetime programming — even though Sunday Night Football and the NBA may take over baseball to Peacock outside of the summer.
ESPN: All 30 Strategy
For more hardcore fans, the biggest adjustment might be ESPN taking $1.65 billion from Sunday Night Baseball and essentially using it to buy the hugely popular MLB.TV package.
The network will control the rights to all 30 out-of-market teams and will take over six essentially isolated markets where MLB has assumed production and distribution, primarily due to the collapse of Diamond Sports and the regional sports network model.
While MLB will continue to produce in-market games, the deal will allow ESPN to sell or distribute local television rights for six teams. MLB already has games produced for five teams: the Cleveland Guardians, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, Minnesota Twins and Colorado Rockies. A sixth team, the Seattle Mariners, will also join the team, which will be sponsored by ESPN this year.
ESPN also plans to broadcast 30 weeknight games each season. It will continue broadcasting the Little League Classic in August, with rights to the Memorial Day game and a standalone slot on the Thursday after the All-Star break, which this year will feature the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies on July 16.
That number makes sense for ESPN, as it drives consumers to TV screens of all sizes during the summer, when the roots of football and college sports are dark. The Athletic reports that MLB.TV’s $150 annual cost is expected to remain the same, but of course gives ESPN significant options to bundle with its larger broadcast inventory.
Subscription fatigue: How much is too much?
That’s something the consumer has to decide. And some of that content is likely to be relevant to brands you’re already paying for.
Netflix will take over coverage of the Horn Run Derby this July and will also air the exclusive opening night game between the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants. Think of it as a potential beta test for a deeper investment for the streaming giant, which is focused on live sports with the NFL and boxing.
With a reported 302 million subscribers, many households don’t need to do anything to access the popular Derby.
Peacocks are another story. The NBC streaming offshoot reportedly only has 41 million subscribers. Maybe adding MLB to the Olympics and one NFL wild card game to be broadcast could change things a bit, but for now the Peacock household is still the exception, not the rule.
The real tipping point will come in September 2026, when eight teams will air a wild-card series on NBC, at least some of which will inevitably go to Peacock.
So what’s in store for consumers who want to seamlessly watch their favorite teams and gem events?
Well, consider that in-market streaming of your favorite team costs around $30 per month. You can deploy Peacock for about $15 per month. Netflix costs about $20 more. That already equates to around $65, but I still don’t know how they’re going to pay Fox Sports and Turner come playoff time.
If you’re a hardcore over-the-market fan or an insatiable ball lover, add an extra $150 a year to MLB.TV.
This is a legitimate investment to continue playing the game. But it’s also a cost of doing business for leagues, networks and consumers alike in this fragmented era.
And check back in 2028. All of MLB’s television rights, including the World Series, All-Star Game, Playoffs, MLB.TV, and Sunday night packages, will all be put back on the market for the highest bidder. Also, around that time, Commissioner Rob Manfred may want to unify all, or at least most, of MLB’s local television programming. Indeed, 2026 will see significant disruption to the way games are consumed. But change is just beginning.
