I’ve been a New York Yankees fan my entire life. Back in 2002, when the YES (Yankees Entertainment and Sports) Network made its debut, I was a Cablevision customer. YES promised to carry all the Yankees games, when they weren’t being broadcast on commercial or national television (FOX, FS1, TBS, ESPN, MLB, NBC, etc.).
On Opening Day, Cablevision had not yet secured a contract with YES, and I had to go to my friend’s place in Staten Island to watch the festivities, because he was a DirecTV customer, and DirecTV had a contract with YES. Later that afternoon, I canceled my Cablevision subscription, and became a DirecTV customer, where I remained for more than two decades. Just as well, because Cablevision didn’t start broadcasting YES games until the 2003 baseball season.
A few years later, SNY (SportsNet New York) made its debut, and the New York Mets switched from the MSG (Madison Square Garden) Network to SNY for all games not broadcast on commercial or national television.
Those of us who pay for cable TV access must fork over extra bucks for a regional sports package, which includes both YES and SNY. Then, around 2021, Prime got involved in the game; as of 2026, they exclusively stream 21 Yankees games for local viewers (these are typically repeated the following morning as YES Encore broadcasts). This year, the Opening Day game between the San Francisco Giants and the Yankees was shown on Netflix. And then there’s Apple TV+, which is now featuring “Friday Night Baseball”.
Well.
Tonight, the New York Mets face off against the New York Yankees at Citi Field. Regional sports fans are paying extra for SNY and YES. But neither station is carrying the game! You must have a subscription with Apple TV+ to see the game. (Sure, you can opt for their ‘Free 7-day trial’ and cancel thereafter.)
Major League Baseball is responsible for these multimillion-dollar deals with all these exclusive streaming services. If you’re not paying for it one way, you’re paying for it another way.
I find this whole situation infuriating, and I don’t know a single baseball fan who doesn’t feel the same way. On principle, I will listen to tonight’s broadcast on WFAN Radio.
Notablog 