DEAL ALERT: In-Market Fans Can Watch San Diego Padres Games for $19.99 per Month, or $74.99 for Whole Season on MLB.TV
The shoe — or rather baseball cleat — has finally dropped! On Wednesday, Major League Baseball announced that it was officially taking over broadcasting duties for the San Diego Padres after Bally Sports San Diego’s parent company Diamond Sports Group failed to make its broadcasting rights payment to the team.
For local fans in the San Diego area, this means that there are now a new host of options to watch the team. For cord-cutters who no longer use cable or satellite, the most convenient way to stream will be with a subscription to MLB.TV.
But wait, isn’t MLB.TV an out-of-market games package? Normally yes, but it’s not every day that a major league sports team loses its broadcasting partner in the middle of a season. To compensate for this, the MLB has made MLB.TV is available in-market in San Diego, and it’s offering some great savings: $19.99 per month, or $74.99 for the rest of the regular season. That’s a 21% savings off the normal monthly rate and 38% off the standard annual plan cost. This deal is only available to users in the San Diego market and does not include access to out-of-market games, but if this describes you, sign up today!
How to Get an MLB.TV Subscription to Watch In-Market Padres Games and Save
- Click here to activate the deal.
- Pick the monthly or the annual subscription plan.
- Choose “Buy Now” (Padres games will be free to stream on MLB.TV until June 4).
- Create an account and complete the sign-up process.
Padres fans who have been looking for a reason to cut the cord can rejoice; this deal means watching Friars games on MLB.TV for the rest of the season will be the same expense, or cheaper, than a monthly cable bill. If fans in the San Diego area flock to MLB.TV to watch Padres games for the rest of the year, it will go a long way toward convincing the MLB that in-market streaming options are viable moving forward.
Can Padres Fans Outside San Diego Get This Deal?
Sadly no, only in-market Padres fans will have access to the special deal from MLB.TV. Out-of-market fans will still be able to use MLB.TV to watch Padres games as they have all season, but there won’t be any special discounts involved.
If you’re a fan of another team covered by a Bally Sports RSN (there are now officially 13), you may find yourself in a similar situation to Padres fans at some point this year. Bally Sports’ parent company Diamond Sports Group has said it will surrender the rights to all teams whose broadcasting contracts cost it money rather than bringing in a profit.
That means more MLB teams could be leaving Bally Sports RSNs at some point this season. If they do, the league will likely offer in-market fans a streaming option via MLB.TV, just as Padres fans are getting now.
MLB.TV
MLB.TV is the official streaming service of Major League Baseball. You can see every out-of-market game live or on demand, and choose home or away TV and radio feeds. The app allows fans to watch up to four games simultaneously on the same screen through their Multi-view feature. MLB.TV can be added to your Sling TV or Prime Video subscription.