How to Watch MLB in 2026: Every Channel & Streaming Package
Baseball is the hardest of the major sports to follow on TV, because there's so much of it and it's scattered everywhere. In 2026 the national picture was reshuffled after ESPN and MLB opted out of their old deal, and most of what you actually watch is still your own team's regional broadcast. Here's the full map — national windows, your local club, and MLB.TV — with what each one costs.
The national windows in 2026
MLB signed new three-year national deals (2026–2028) with ESPN, NBCUniversal and Netflix, on top of its continuing FOX and Warner Bros. Discovery (TBS) agreements. That leaves seven national outlets, each with its own night:
- FOX & FS1 — Saturdays. "Baseball Night in America" headlines Saturday primetime on FOX, with additional games on FS1. FOX also carries the All-Star Game (July 14, 2026) and the World Series. FOX games are nationally exclusive.
- NBC & Peacock — Sundays. NBCUniversal is the new home of Sunday Night Baseball (which moved from ESPN) plus a Sunday-morning "Sunday Leadoff" streaming package on Peacock. Some Sunday-night games are Peacock-exclusive early in the season before NBC joins.
- ESPN — weeknights. ESPN's slimmed-down deal carries about 30 exclusive regular-season weeknight games, a few of them on ABC. ESPN also now sells and distributes MLB.TV (more below), but has no postseason in 2026.
- TBS — Tuesdays. Warner Bros. Discovery's "MLB Tuesday" airs on TBS and truTV and streams on HBO Max.
- Apple TV — Fridays. "Friday Night Baseball" returns for a fifth season with two exclusive games most Fridays. It requires an Apple TV subscription ($12.99/month in the US) — there's no extra charge beyond that.
- Netflix — tentpole events. Netflix carries a handful of standalone events: Opening Night, the Home Run Derby (July 13), and the Field of Dreams Game (Twins–Phillies, Aug 13). They're included with any Netflix plan.
- MLB Network. A 24/7 baseball channel with select out-of-market games; it's included with an MLB.TV seasonal subscription and carried by some live-TV streamers.
Most games are on your regional network
National windows are the minority. On any given night, the great majority of games air on a club's regional sports network or in-market stream — YES (Yankees), NESN (Red Sox), SNY (Mets), MASN (Orioles/Nationals), Marquee (Cubs), SportsNet LA (Dodgers), and more. For 2026, a growing number of clubs — 14 in all — are on MLB-produced local broadcasts with their own direct-to-consumer streams (Reds.TV, Twins.TV, Padres.TV, Guardians.TV, Rays.TV and others). To find your club's exact carrier and every game's channel, use our live schedule or your team's page (for example, the Yankees or Dodgers schedule).
MLB.TV — the out-of-market package
If you follow a team that isn't local to you, MLB.TV streams every out-of-market game. For 2026 it's sold and distributed by ESPN (through its app) as well as MLB's own platforms. The catch is in-market blackouts: your local club's games are blacked out on MLB.TV in its home territory, and nationally-exclusive games (like FOX Saturdays) aren't available either. MLB now offers blackout-free in-market streaming for most clubs as a separate product, and MLB.TV's live team radio is blackout-free for all 30 clubs. We break the rules down on our MLB.TV & blackouts guide.
What it costs (verify before you buy)
Prices move — MLB.TV in particular prorates downward as the season goes on, and streaming plans change often. As a rough guide for 2026: a full MLB.TV season runs on the order of $100–$150 depending on when in the year you buy (single-team packages are cheaper); Apple TV is $12.99/month; Peacock and HBO Max are each around $11/month for their ad-supported tiers; Netflix is whatever plan you already have. A live-TV streaming service (to get FOX, ESPN, TBS and, on some services, the RSNs) is the priciest piece. Always confirm current pricing on each provider's own site before subscribing.
How to catch the postseason
The 2026 playoffs are split by round: NBC/Peacock has the Wild Card round, TBS/HBO Max has the AL Division and Championship Series, FOX/FS1 has the NL Division and Championship Series, and FOX has the World Series. Full details, format and dates are on our MLB postseason TV guide.
MLB 2026 national coverage at a glance
| Saturday | FOX + FS1 (incl. All-Star Game & World Series) |
| Sunday | NBC / Peacock (Sunday Night + Sunday Leadoff) |
| Tuesday | TBS / truTV / HBO Max |
| Weeknights | ESPN (~30 games; some on ABC) |
| Friday | Apple TV — Friday Night Baseball |
| Tentpoles | Netflix (Opening Night, HR Derby, Field of Dreams) |
| Your team, daily | Regional network / club stream + MLB.TV out-of-market |
For the exact date, first pitch and channel of every game — national and local — see our full 2026 MLB schedule, updated as times are confirmed, or compare the baseball streaming services.
Last verified July 2026, from MLB's and the broadcasters' own announcements. National assignments and streaming prices change — confirm current pricing with each service.