ESPN Acquires Exclusive Local In-Market Streaming Rights For Six MLB Teams—From Padres to Mariners
Over the past several years there’s been plenty of drama over tv deals. Some baseball franchises lost them, others were shuttled into other networks. One example being Diamond Sports Group (DSG); which operated the Bally Sports network; defaulted on its contract, thus failing to make scheduled rights fee payments due to its bankruptcy proceedings which ultimately affected different teams. Nevertheless, now a few ball clubs will now have their broadcasting situation sorted out thanks to a new agreement. Commissioner Robert Manfred announced that ESPN will acquire the exclusive local in-market streaming rights for six MLB teams, including everyone from the Padres to the Mariners.
This development is all a part of the new local and national rights agreement between Major League Baseball and sports network giant, ESPN. As part of the agreement, ESPN becomes the exclusive rights holder of MLB.TV, making thousands of games available each season on the ESPN App, in addition to MLB platforms in 2026. This new deal takes effect beginning in 2026 through 2028.
Regarding ball clubs ESPN will now have the rights to, the network released the following statement,
“MLB.TV and its thousands of out-of-market games each year will stream live and on-demand on the ESPN App. The games will also be available on MLB platforms in 2026. ESPN and Major League Baseball have one of sports media’s most prolific and longest standing partnerships, dating back to the 1990 season. The partnership has served as a hub of broadcast innovation throughout the years.
Additionally, ESPN has acquired exclusive, local in-market streaming rights for MLB Clubs. The MLB Clubs currently include the San Diego Padres, Cleveland Guardians, Seattle Mariners, Minnesota Twins, Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies. In 2026, the games will be available to purchase and stream on MLB platforms.”
ESPN Acquires Exclusive Local In-Market Streaming Rights For Six MLB Teams—From Padres to Mariners
Furthermore, Jimmy Pitaro who is currently serving as the chairman of ESPN had this to say about the new agreement with the MLB. He mentions: “This fan-friendly agreement allows us to showcase the great sport of baseball on both a local and national level, while prioritizing our streaming future. MLB.TV is a coveted, must-have companion for passionate MLB fans all over the country, and it will be strongly complemented by our national game package and in-market team rights – all within the ESPN App.”
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