Stream every game your team plays from Opening Day through postseason.
By Christina Buff on March 20, 2026
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For how beautifully simplistic baseball is as a sport, it’s ironic how complicated it has become to watch it on TV. Every year of the streaming era, watching live sports becomes a bit more convoluted — and 2026 is no different. This year, Major League Baseball has two new national broadcast partners, plus a new deal with ESPN. And that’s on top of the already complicated streaming service lineup. Let’s get into it.
If you can’t fathom missing a single inning, we’ve got your guide to watching the 2026 MLB season, including which streamers you’ll need and all of the best ways to save.
When does the 2026 MLB season start?
The 2026 Major League Baseball season officially opens with a special game on Wednesday, March 25 when the New York Yankees take on the San Francisco Giants at 8:05 p.m. ET. Traditional Opening Day falls on Thursday, March 26 for the remaining 28 teams — that’s the earliest scheduled traditional Opening Day in MLB history. The regular season runs through late September, with each team playing a total of 162 games.
What channels or streaming services do I need to watch baseball?
In 2026, you’ll need a collection of channels and/or streaming services in order to catch every game your favorite MLB team plays. But first, let’s break it down into two categories: national versus local broadcasts. As you can guess, national broadcasts target a nationwide audience and air on major networks. Local broadcasts serve specific regional communities.
MLB national broadcasts
MLB has added new broadcast partners for games on national TV for the 2026 season on top of the already substantial lineup from last season. In 2026, national games will air across ABC/ESPN, Fox/FS1, MLB Network, TBS, Apple TV, NBC/Peacock and Netflix. In other words, you’ll need a variety of channels if you want to catch every game. It’s not as straightforward as simply subscribing to a single streaming service or having cable.
– ABC/ESPN — ESPN will exclusively air 30 regular season games across this year’s schedule beginning on April 15. Three of those games will air on the over-the-air parent network ABC on Sundays.
– Fox/FS1 — Fox and FS1 combined will air over 85 regular season games in 2026, including 23 “Baseball Night in America” Saturday primetime matchups. You’ll also need these networks for the NLDS and NLCS playoff series, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
– NBC/Peacock — For the first time in 25 years, MLB coverage returns to NBC, starting with an Opening Day doubleheader on March 26. The main network, combined with NBC Sports and Peacock, will air 27 primetime games and 34 afternoon games in 2026. It will be the new home to Sunday Night Baseball this season and some games will be exclusive to Peacock.
– Netflix — Netflix started dabbling in sports the past couple years, starting with the NFL on Christmas Day. This year, the streamer will also be the home of three exclusive MLB events: the 2026 season opener on March 25, the Home Run Derby, and the “Field of Dreams” game on Aug. 13.
– Apple TV — The home to Friday Night Baseball since 2022, Apple TV typically hosts doubleheaders on Fridays that are exclusive to the streamer with no local blackouts.
– MLB Network — The league’s official network airs a couple of games each week throughout the regular season.
– TBS — Not only does TBS air games on Tuesdays throughout the regular season, beginning with the Yankees vs. Mariners on March 31, but it’s also the home to 2026’s ALDS and ALCS playoff rounds.
MLB local broadcasts
Local broadcasts are a whole different beast. These broadcasts only serve specific regions and air on RSNs (regional sports networks). The majority of games throughout the regular season air on these networks. To put it simply, if you’re a fan of your local team and want to watch as many games as possible, you’ll need access to your team’s RSN. If you’re a fan of a team from a different region, you’ll be blacked out from watching games on that team’s RSN. Instead, you’ll need access to MLB.TV, which airs every out of market MLB game (more on that below). It’s unnecessarily complicated, but that’s the way of watching sports in 2026.
What is an RSN and which one do I need?
While the NFL offers national broadcasts of most games with specific in-market choice games, the MLB, NBA, and NHL complicate things exponentially with regional