You could definitely call tonight’s matchup between the Red Sox and Tigers an all-or-nothing game for Boston. Because a win would lock up their first postseason spot since 2021, and you can imagine the buzz among Sox fans. Till yesterday, Boston was at 87–72, and everyone was hoping to see that 88th win seal a Wild Card berth. And the job is done!  But for fans?

A majority of them might have missed the action. Courtesy: MLB’s media policy.

Unless you’re heading to Fenway, tuning in from home won’t be so simple. Normally, fans would flip over to NESN, the team’s broadcast partner, but this one did not air there. That means no local TV coverage, leaving MLB fans scrambling for other ways to catch the action. But fans could have still watched the live action hidden behind a paywall. Reportedly, Apple TV was broadcasting the game, and surely NESN isn’t happy about that…

“Let me make myself clear: I think the game should be on NESN. I think MLB is doing a massive disservice to fans by having a game like this behind a paywall. At least they shouldn’t allow games in September to be streaming only. I assure you, NESN is not happy to lose the game.” NESN announcer Tom Caron didn’t hide his frustration over MLB’s weird broadcasting decision.

A massive disservice to MLB fans? Caron thinks so because watching this particular game would come with additional costs.

Tonight’s game didn’t stream on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit, NESN, or any regular cable channel, but streaming only on Apple TV+ as part of the Friday Night Baseball package. And that comes with a cost!

An Apple TV+ subscription runs $9.99 a month, but there are a couple of ways fans can watch without paying, too.

For instance, if you’ve recently bought a new Apple device, you might qualify for a three-month free trial. So, while most Boston fans are subscribed to their local media, NESN, they would need to put an additional effort/cost to watch a single game. For Caron, that’s enough disservice for MLB fans.

MLB’s local vs. national media battle continues

It is well known that MLB is struggling to match NFL and NBA in initiating uniform national media rights for all the games. And the dominance of local media rights by certain teams like the Yankees, Red Sox, and Dodgers is what is making things even more difficult.

Back in March 2022, Apple struck a seven-year deal with MLB worth $85 million per year for exclusive rights to stream Friday night games. These matchups air only on Apple TV+ and aren’t subject to local blackout rules. At first, Apple offered the first half of the 2022 season for free. But since then, you need an Apple TV+ subscription to watch.

That means every Friday night game is off local networks like NESN, and fans have to subscribe to Apple TV+ to tune in to their favorite pastime. And it is hurting the interests of fans the most.

Red Sox fans are feeling that frustration now, and the same happened with Dodgers fans, too. They missed out on Clayton Kershaw’s final home start because it was locked behind Apple TV+.

So, what’s next?

With MLB commissioner Rob Manfred pushing to bring all teams under national media deals, there’s hope for a smoother setup down the road. But for now, fans will still have to deal with some big games being tucked away behind a paywall.