MLB Announcing 3-Year Media Deal with NBC, ESPN and Netflix Has Fans Fuming on Social Media

The MLB on Wednesday announced a 3-year media deal for streaming games from the 2026 season with NBC, ESPN and Netflix.

MLB Announcing 3-Year Media Deal with NBC, ESPN and Netflix Has Fans Fuming on Social Media

Rob Manfred (Image via Imago)

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The MLB made a huge announcement on Wednesday. The league revealed a 3-year media rights agreements with NBCUniversal, ESPN and Netflix starting from the 2026 season. This development caused some outrage among fans on social media.

These new media rights will see these platforms covering games from the 2026 to the 2028 season. ESPN has been a partner with MLB since 1990. While it does lose the postseason games and the Home Run Derby, it becomes rights holder for MLB.TV.

NBC has had a long-term history with baseball. The network used to air games from 1939 to 1989. Following short stints with ABC in 1994 and 1995, NBC aired playoff games from 1996 to 2000. They will now return to airing regular MLB games for the first time in over a quarter-century. It will also become the new home of “Sunday Night Baseball” from here on.

Meanwhile, Netflix will cover live baseball for the first time. In recent years, the OTT platform has become actual right-broadcasters for several sports, including professional wrestling (WWE) and Boxing.

It will now air the T-Mobile Home Run Derby and will have several important games, such as the MLB at Field of Dreams Game and the World Baseball Classic in Japan. It’s first game of the season will see Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees take on the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park.

This development comes on the heels of a massive increase in viewership this year. The recent postseason was the most-watched in the past eight years.

Game 7 of the World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays turned out to be the most-watched baseball game in the past 34 years. As per reports, around 51 million viewers watched the game from the United States, Canada and Japan.

Social media reacts to MLB announcing media rights with NBC, ESPN and Netflix

From the 2026 season, MLB games will return to NBC and air for the first time on Netflix. Apart from that, their relationship with ESPN will continue following the announcement of a 3-year media rights agreements with this networking giants.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred
Rob Manfred (Image via Toronto Star)

The majority of MLB fans on social media were unimpressed with this and were left fuming. Several users on X voiced their displeasure with this. One wrote, “tired of needing multiple apps” to watch their teams play baseball.

Check out that and some other fan reactions regarding this development below:

While these new agreements will bring in several changes, there will be some things that will remain unchanged. FOX/FS1 will continue to air the All-Star Game, some regular season games and the Division Series, League Championship Series and the World Series.

TBS meanwhile, will continue to air LCS and Division Series and some regular-season games on Tuesday nights. Apple TV will continue to stream “Friday Night Baseball” doubleheaders throughout the season.

MLB announces return of Field of Dreams Game in 2026

While this was already confirmed earlier this year, the MLB once again announced the return of the Field of Dreams Game in 2026. For the first time since 2022, the MLB at Field of Dreams will return to Dyersville, Iowa, with the Philadelphia Phillies taking on the Minnesota Twins.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred
Rob Manfred (Image via MLB)

The matchup between the Phillies and the Twins on August 13, 2026, will be the third MLB at Field of Dreams game, and the first at the refurbished site. The first edition of this game took place on August 12, 2021 with the Chicago White Sox beating the New York Yankees 9-8.

This game returned to this venue on August 11, 2022, with the Chicago Cubs defeating the Cincinnati Reds 4-2. The third edition in 2026 will air live on Netflix as part of the new broadcasting deal.

This game will serve as the home series opener for the Twins against the Phillies. Following a travel day off on Friday, the two teams will return to Target Field in Minnesota on Saturday to resume the series.

The site, popularized by the 1989 film Field of Dreams, will also host a Triple-A game between St. Paul and Iowa, the minor league affiliates of the Twins and the Cubs, respectively.

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