MLB TV Review

Genres and channels

You can enjoy every regular season game with MLB.TV. The exceptions are nationally broadcast games, such as the playoffs and ESPN Sunday Night Baseball, and broadcasts which are on cable in the area where you reside. In other words, the team which owns your local market will be blacked out all season long. You can enter your zipcode on the MLB.TV site to find out what your blackout restrictions are. In such an instance, you will not be able to watch the game live through MLB.TV. However, the game will be available as an archived game 90 minutes after it has concluded.

A feature designed for baseball fans is the ability to place radio audio over the video stream. Due to many TV networks operating on a delay, having the radio on over the TV wasn’t feasible, but with MLB.TV this has again become an option. Additionally, you can go back and watch any game from the season if you’ve missed out on any action, on top of highlights and condensed games if you’re short on time or just want to view the essentials.

There is an archive of games going back to 2013 if you want to view some of your oldest favourites, which is nice for when you have some spare time and want to relive some of the most exciting moments in baseball. Additionally, the audio feeds aren’t subject to blackouts, and fans of local teams won’t have to sign up for a full MLB.TV subscription in order to gain access to this content.

Major League Baseball has struck up deals with television sports networks in order to broadcast some of the games on a national scale. When games show on national TV, they aren’t generally available on regional sports networks, which means that the TV rights in the region you reside have been sold for national broadcast games and those including the teams you can watch on local networks. However, other broadcasts – the regional sports networks outside your local area – aren’t available to watch on cable, satellite or even as part of a skinny bundle. The reason MLB.TV was set up is to allow viewers access to this content. In other words, subscribers can view the regular season, out of market and non national games.

For those wanting to bypass the restrictions on MLB.TV by using a proxy server or VPN to convince the site you’re located somewhere else, you should be aware that this violates the provider’s terms of service, and could result in your account being cancelled.

Overall, viewers can enjoy their favourite home and away broadcasts on video, with a picture quality of 60 frames per second. Furthermore, you can watch up to four games at once thanks to multi view. Viewing options include single, dual, thumbnail and quad, making it easy to keep on track with the pitches from all of your favorite teams. Before joining a live game, you can watch a quick rundown of key moments that have taken place so far to get caught up on the action. Those US customers who are authenticated will be able to live stream every game from the 2019 World Series and the 90th All Star Game. Live games can be paused and rewound, and you can track the type, speed and location of every pitch as they play out live.

Top MLB.TV shows and movies

A Perfect Game – A documentary which looks at an MLB game played in June 2010 by Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga. He nearly became the 21st pitcher in Major League history to throw the perfect game.

In The Blood – Looks at the journey Vladimir Guerrero Jr and Fernando Tatis Jr made to MLB as they had the legacies of their fathers, who played the big leagues, weighing on them.

Base Ball Discovered – A documentary which looks into baseball’s roots. Focuses on the generational theories about the beginnings of baseball, plus explores the ancestors of the pastime.

School of Rickey – Focuses on the life of Rickey Henderson, seen as both a player and entertainer who transformed baseball from ‘Old School to New School’.

Tears of Joy – A documentary focusing on the New York Mets and their run to the World Series. Originally aired in December 2015 on Fox Sports 1.

Forever Brothers: The ’71 Pittsburgh Pirates Story – Looks at the story of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1971, who made history by creating the first all-minority starting lineup for the Majors on their way to a World Series title.

Set Apart: The Jim Abbott Story – A documentary which focuses on the career of Jim Abbott, a pitcher who was born without a right hand but played in the American League for a decade.

Truth Be Told: Rick Ankiel – Looks at the struggles Rick Ankiel went through to overcome a difficult youth and mental health struggles. Focuses on his journey to success, from MLB pitcher to outfielder.

Walk-Off Stories: From a Battle to a War – Boston and New York stars return to the limelight to look at the 2003 ALCS Game 7, which was won by the Yankees thanks to Aaron Boone’s 11th inning homer.

Iron: The Legacy of Cal Ripken Jr – A documentary which tells the story of Cal Ripken Jr’s baseball career, which includes beating the record of most consecutive baseball games played in 1995.

Streaming library

There are several features included with the user interface on MLB.TV which make it easy and intuitive to navigate. For example, users can customise the platform based on the team they choose. Furthermore, they can choose either home or away TV broadcast feeds for live games. There is also an option to watch with a Spanish language audio overlay.

The interface has multi view controls which let users watch multiple games. The views available are pip, dual or quad. Furthermore, there is a game scoreboard, which is filtered to show live and archived games to include all the games which have aired that day.

The player controls let users manage both the game feed and the video, and the global controls include volume, mini mode, fullscreen, closed captioning and preferences. There are also supporting features which let users see supporting data and video based on the game currently being played.

Streaming quality

While games on MLB TV can be watched in high definition, or HD, 4K is not a streaming resolution which is available on the platform at the time of writing. To watch in HD, devices must have a minimum internet speed of 5Mbps, generally speaking. HD is attached to resolutions of either 720p or 1080p.

Customer support

MLB TV has an online support center which includes all of the ways users can get in touch, plus a database of commonly asked questions. The topics are divided into sections – Reset your password, Subscription access, Blackout information, Desktop and laptop support, Connect devices FAQ, Account and billing, Network troubleshooting, System requirements, Bandwidth check, Accessibility FAQ, Mobile support and MLB audio.

There is a Twitter account which provides support to fans. Alternatively, there is an email address which people can use for non urgent queries. There is both a US and international phone number for speaking to a person in real time. There does not appear to be functionality for live chat at present.

Free trial

There are reports online that MLB TV offers a seven day free trial. This may be available with the annual package or the monthly package. To see if you are eligible for a free trial, you can contact customer service.

Plans and pricing

If you want to sign up for MLB.TV, there are two main options – All Teams, or Single Team. With the All Teams subscription, you can watch every out of market regular season game live or on demand. Furthermore, you can watch on whichever supported device you please, and this includes the use of the MLB At Bat Premium app. This subscription costs $24.99 a month. Alternatively, you can pay for a year upfront at $99.99.

The Single Team subscription allows you to watch one team’s out of market regular season games live or on demand, with all other features identical to that seen with the All Teams subscription. Whether you support the Chicago Cubs, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays or the Texas Rangers, you can choose a team from the drop-down menu to proceed. The pricing is $79.99 a year.

Competitors

There are several options out there when it comes to live streaming sports. For example, other platforms include fuboTV, ESPN Plus and NHL TV. All of these services have their plus points, but ultimately your choice will depend on your viewing preferences. If you only tend to watch sports, then MLB.TV is a dedicated provider which aims to give sports fans value for their money. On the other hand, fuboTV gives customers a general TV subscription along with the ability to add further sports channels as an add-on. This may work for families looking for streaming services options, or if you watch a range of programs.

Is MLB.TV worth it?

MLB.TV is a solid choice for sports fans wanting to watch a range of live and catch up content. Paying monthly or yearly allows flexibility with financial budgets, and you can choose a single team to focus on if you have a favorite. There are many ways to customise the watching experience, such as pausing and rewinding live play and gaining more information about who is batting, the position of the pitch and more. Furthermore, the ability to watch game highlights before entering a live match or diving into the archives to watch your top sporting moments from the past few years ensures you’ll gain hours of entertainment with this subscription.