MLB Blackout Rules

[George_T]

Has anyone heard of any changes for MLB's blackout rules for this upcoming season. By far, MLB's blackout rules are the most stringent of all four major sports. Very limited replays of games on DirecTV's sports package, no National Fox game of the week feeds included in MLB Extra Innings, no MLB channel (similar to NBA's and NFL's channel), no over-the-air feeds included in MLB Extra Innings. You would think with baseball's declining popularity, a loosening of the blackout rules might drum up a few new viewers. Is anyone else as disgusted w/MLB's blackout rules as I am?

[James_F]

You mean its worse than Football? If you lived in Arizona you'd never see the Cardinals play on TV (not that its a bad thing). While I don't like it, if FOX and ESPN want to pay big bucks to have Saturday Day, Sunday Night and Wednesday to themselves, so be it.

[DCSholtis]

Nope the Blackout rules are fine with me.....For the first year or 2 of the package they did have OTA feeds included......BTW I dont see your point on limited replays of MLB games.....Seems to me that most replays are aired in the clear immediately after each team plays on their particular RSN.....Though YES Started blacking theirs out for some reason toward the end of last season and Comcast rarely shows replays of Oriole games...but those are the only 2 exceptions I think....

[George_T]

Here in Tennessee, most west coast teams' replays were blacked out on the sports package (Anaheim, Dodgers, Oakland, Seattle, Colorado, St. Louis, CWS, etc.). The only replays that we received were the Red Sox, Indians (fortunately, since I'm a Tribe fan!), and sometimes the Yankees and Orioles. For some reason, we must have gotten much less replays than other parts of the country.

As for the Fox National feeds, it's OK that they black-out the regional sports network feeds during their exclusive time, but to not televise all the national games of the week on MLB EI is weak. I believe that hockey and basketball show their national games, baseball should as well.

I've been with D* since 1996, and they used to televise some Tigers and Rangers OTA feeds, but not anymore. I know that MLB EI cannot show Philadelphia feeds because of the Comcast situation, but it would be nice if they would show some of the Expos' and Blue Jays' Canadian feeds (Like NHL Center Ice does).

I just think that MLB could make the package much better at minimal cost to them.

[DCSholtis]

They might show some Puerto Rico Expo games this year.....though I dont know if we would be able to understand them because they just might put them on a spanish network for viewing...