Play ball! The two words baseball fans are sure glad to hear. Here’s your primer on the 2023 season and how you can stream your favorite team’s games from anywhere, regardless of blackouts and even if you’ve cut the cord.
Quick Overview on How to Stream MLB in 2023
The MLB season is back! Find the best ways to watch it, no matter where you are.
Best VPNs to Stream Live MLB Games
Best FlashRouters to Stream Live MLB Games
And, if you’re looking for the easiest way to get your VPN on your SmartTV, upgrading your wireless network router will help ensure a seamless streaming experience.
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MLB Season 2023 Overview
Fans can look forward to a full 162-game season starting on March 30, 2023, and ending on October 1, 2023. This season features a newly renamed team, the Cleveland Guardians, and an expanded postseason, among other things.
Last season’s World Series winners, the Atlanta Braves, will hope they can rekindle the magic of last season and get their fourth World Series. They’re expected to face stiff competition from the likes of the Dodgers and the Blue Jays.
Streaming MLB Games in 2023
Catching your favorite team’s baseball games is no longer a given with broadcast blackouts and other restrictions. For any fan struggling to understand MLB blackout restrictions, FlashRouters has an explanatory guide.
Accessing MLB 2023 regular season and playoff games can be an expensive endeavor for US fans with blackout restrictions that could end up costing hundreds of dollars. Luckily, we’ve got the perfect option for you!
Can I Watch This MLB Season on MLB.tv?
MLB.tv is MLB’s subscription service. MLB.tv provides both audio and video feeds of games, as well as a number of features like exclusive interviews. You can either buy a subscription to view all teams or just one team. If you choose to purchase a subscription for all the teams they can choose to pay monthly for the season. MLB.tv is a good solution if you follow a team outside of your market. However, for the World Series, all games are nationally broadcast and MLB.tv is blacked out.
So what is a blacked-out baseball obsessive supposed to do? Why, use a VPN, of course!
How Can I Use a VPN for MLB 2023 Games (and Beyond)?
A VPN is an acronym for Virtual Private Network. A Virtual Private Network filters an Internet connection through a remote server and back. Tunneling between servers encrypts the connection. It also changes the appearance of a user’s geolocation. For example, if you are in San Diego and want to watch Padres games live, selecting a VPN server outside the California area, say in New York, will open the door to accessing geo-blocked content.
Furthermore, blackout restrictions mean that fans in the US, US territories, and Canada will have a 90-minute delay (beginning after the game ends) for the regular season, playoffs, and the World Series.
However, using a VPN to transfer to a different country outside of the US, its territories, or Canada can help you stream the regular season, post-season, and World Series without this delay.
What Are The Best VPNs for MLB Streaming?
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How Can I Stream MLB With a FlashRouter?
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For the ultimate streaming fans, a great router will revolutionize your wireless network all season long, whether it’s opening day, playoffs, or the 2023 MLB World Series.
What's the Best Wi-Fi Router for MLB Streaming?
Asus RT-BE96U Wi-Fi 7 FlashRouter
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What Are The Benefits of Using a FlashRouter for MLB Streaming?
All of our open-source firmware-installed routers come equipped with built-in VPN options for integrating MLB.tv worldwide, saving you the trouble of setting up your VPN connection on your own.
Furthermore, you won’t need to worry about bricking your network’s centerpiece router by improperly installing your open-source firmware on yourself. We take care of all of that for you. And you can connect multiple devices to a single VPN connection by using our routers!
Get a VPN account to access MLB games in 2023 and beyond from anywhere and a router to ensure that your MLB streaming is as smooth as possible, and you’ll be set all season!
Need more info? Explore some of the other benefits that come with a FlashRouter!
Have any other questions on streaming MLB games? Feel free to contact us.
What Are MLB Blackout Restrictions?
Major League Baseball, like most North American Sports Leagues, is no stranger to blackout restrictions. MLB’s blackout policy encompasses two major themes: market restrictions and national vs local designations.
MLB justifies these practices by saying that they’re meant to protect local broadcasters. Local broadcasters pay money to purchase the rights for game broadcasts. When you watch the games via local broadcasts it brings in ad revenue for local broadcasters. Higher viewership numbers, in theory, mean more revenues for local broadcasters.
Local restrictions designate certain games as national games and others as local games. National games are carried by broadcasters all over the country, no matter the region. Local games are carried by Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) and change depending on the region.
That means if you’re a fan of the San Diego Padres (lucky you) traveling to Detroit for the week, you can only watch the Padres if the game is nationally broadcast. If not, you’ll have to settle for local Tigers games (yikes!).
Alternatively, you can use a VPN to access your favorite team’s games.
MLB also differentiates between in-market and out-of-market games. In-market games correspond to geographic areas where teams are located, while out-of-market games are games played by teams outside of that geographic area. Luckily, there’s a map that illustrates precisely where each broadcast market is.
Depending on your location, you’ll get games for a different team. For example, the blue area covering Texas and Louisiana shows Houston Astros and Texas Rangers broadcast territory. Fans inside the area will see in-market games for these Texas teams. However, once you leave that area, say to Boston, either for a business trip or for a permanent move, your in-market games change to Red Sox games.
If you are looking to stream Houston Astros games in Boston (or outside of Texas/Louisiana), you can use options like MLB.TV or the MLB Network (for national games) to stream those games. However, using those features provides only partial relief. You will still need a cable connection to access local games. Alternatively, you can use a VPN, or Virtual Private Network, to change your virtual location and connect to whatever region you want.
To learn more about what a VPN is and how it can help you stream MLB games in 2023 and beyond, jump to our VPN section.
How Else Can I Watch MLB Games?
The 2023 MLB season is the first of a new seven-year deal between Fox, ESPN, and TBS. Like in previous years, certain National Games will stream on MLB Network. For those looking to stream using OTT services, they should be available via the following services:
- Hulu TV: ESPN, TBS, FS1, FOX
- YouTube TV: ESPN, TBS, FS1, FOX RSN
- DirecTV: ESPN, TBS, MLB Network, FS1, FOX RSN
- FuboTV: FOX, FS1, TBS
Games broadcast on ESPN will also stream on ESPN+.
Unlike previous seasons, certain games will stream exclusively on online media, with AppleTV+ joining the MLB broadcasting space. The AppleTV+ streaming service will offer Friday Night Baseball games.
Other streaming services are also involved. The day before the start of the season, the MLB announced a deal with NBC’s Peacock for Sunday morning games. Under the contract, Peacock will stream 18 Sunday Morning games throughout the season. Meanwhile, Yankees fans will now need Amazon Prime Video to watch local market games. The streaming service will stream games formerly shown on WPIX.
Have any other questions on streaming MLB games? Feel free to contact us.
BEST VPNs OF 2024
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