Uncertainty is brewing in Major League Baseball — and this time, it’s not about players or teams. It’s about how fans watch them. With ESPN walking away from a $550 million deal, MLB has been left navigating uncharted streaming territory. But whispers of a genuine turnaround are now surfacing — and it might just reshape how America’s pastime reaches its audience.
It was in February this year that the MLB and ESPN decided to part ways over the rights fee. While ESPN requested a reduction in the fee, MLB and Rob Manfred were firm in making no change. The discussions became heated, eventually leading to the termination of the contract just a month before the regular season started. In a statement on the same, the MLB shared, “Given that MLB provides strong viewership, valuable demographics, and the exclusive right to cover unique events like the Home Run Derby, ESPN’s demand to reduce rights fees is simply unacceptable. As a result, we have mutually agreed to terminate our agreement.” And now, MLB is on a hunt for a new broadcasting partner.
As per a latest report by The Athletic, MLB executives are negotiating with top streaming platforms, including Netflix, Apple, ESPN, and NBC. Notably, NBC/Peacock and Apple TV+ are currently the top contenders for “Sunday Night Baseball” and the first-round playoff games. Meanwhile, ESPN is also expected to gear up its contention by adding weekday games and providing a bigger daily digital presence.
MLB negotiating with Apple, Netflix, ESPN, NBC for possible broadcast packages: Sources https://t.co/JSDsSh2Kxh
— The Athletic MLB (@TheAthleticMLB) August 14, 2025
Interestingly, this comes at a time when the UFC has also inked a major contract with Paramount+ for a seven-year, $7.7B deal. thereby registering a 1000% hike in rights fees. If MLB manages to ink a deal, it could also see a similar hike and possibly earn more money. However, while all the contracts are being considered for 3 seasons so far, “No deals have been finalized, and talks are active, creating an opportunity for other platforms to jump in,” the report stated. And guess what? It might not be easy either.
With every team having separate broadcasting partners, the bid to unify MLB coverage has been on the table for quite some time now. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has made it clear on multiple occasions that he “wants to get out of the business of blackouts,” with a unified TV deal. However, if multiple partners are given streaming rights as part of the current discussion, the objective might hit a major snag, thereby risking more varied streaming services for the American audience.
Meanwhile, this move comes when ESPN has clearly expressed its desire to reconcile with the MLB.
Speaking in a recent interaction with The Press Box, Jimmy Pitaro, the chairman of ESPN, made the media giant’s aspirations clear. “We elected to opt out. But at the time, I made it very clear to Commissioner [Rob] Manfred that we love the game of baseball and we wanted to figure something out,” he said. Continuing further, he added, “We absolutely want to figure something out with baseball. And we remain in conversations with them.” Well, a reconciliation looks to be on the way. Meanwhile, Commissioner Rob Manfred is also making aspirations to nationalise the streaming services for the audience.
What are Rob Manfred’s MLB Streaming plans?
Soon after the fallout earlier this year, Rob Manfred wasted no time in calling ESPN “a shrinking platform.” However, it appears that MLB might continue to do business with them, leaving Manfred with some more regrets over his past comments. But when it comes to his streaming plans, the MLB commissioner seems to be pretty clear with what he wants.
Speaking in an interaction on The Pat McAfee Show, Manfred called out the disrupted Media environment across MLB. “We need to streamline our offering and get out of the blackout business,” he said. “It is hardest for us because we’re the most locally dependent in the RSN model.” His solution? Shift toward a national model with more exposure. Manfred further dropped a telling instance: “We took over the Padres’ local broadcast… Within two weeks, we lit up MLB.TV in-market and sold 20,000 subscriptions. What does that tell you?” Maybe it tells us fans are ready. But is the league ready too? Looks like the answer might not be far.
For now, it will be interesting to see if the league can come to a final deal anytime soon. Will the viewers have a new streaming experience ahead of the playoffs? Well, only time will tell.
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