Now that pitchers and catchers have reported, the eyes of the sports world are slowly shifting back to baseball, and thanks to a recent report, it sounds like Apple TV+ has a stacked lineup on deck for the second season of its “Friday Night Baseball” block.
The New York Post recently reported “Friday Night Baseball’s” first-half schedule and among the games are a few powerhouse matchups. Among the most exciting games is the World Series champion Houston Astros visiting the Atlanta Braves on April 21, the Philadelphia Phillies traveling to Houston to face the Astros on April 28, and the San Diego Padres heading to the Bronx to square off with the New York Yankees on May 26.
The Post also reported that the broadcast teams for the new season of games on Apple TV will look different than they did last season. Wayne Randazzo and former All-Star pitcher Dontrelle Willis will form one team, while Alex Faust and former MLB outfielder Ryan Spilborghs will make up the other team. It’s unclear who will be the “first” team, but we imagine the duo with the former World Series champion pitcher will take first dibs; if there even is a “first” team on a streaming platform.
Another interesting move for the new season has to do with the timing of the first pitches. Based on the start times, it also looks like Apple will broadcast games on multiple Fridays simultaneously this season, rather than airing doubleheaders as the streamer did in 2022. There will still be a handful of weeks when Apple will have two games running theoretically back-to-back, but more often than not, they will overlap and even begin at the same time.
At this point, it is unclear whether that change was made because of viewership concerns, or simply by the luck of the draw when settling on which games to stream, but based on some of the changes that Apple made last season to the traditional baseball broadcast, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the streamer experimented with its second season as well.
You can check out the complete first-half broadcast schedule below:
| Date | Matchup | Time (ET) |
|---|---|---|
| April 7 | Rangers at Cubs | 2:20 p.m. |
| Padres at Braves | 7:20 p.m. | |
| April 14 | Giants at Tigers | 6:40 p.m. |
| Angels at Red Sox | 7:10 p.m. | |
| April 21 | Blue Jays at Yankees | 7:05 p.m. |
| Astros at Braves | 7:20 p.m. | |
| April 28 | Phillies at Astros | 8:10 p.m. |
| Cardinals at Dodgers | 10:10 p.m. | |
| May 5 | White Sox at Reds | 6:40 p.m. |
| Twins at Guardians | 7:10 p.m. | |
| May 12 | Royals at Brewers | 8:10 p.m. |
| Cubs at Twins | 8:10 p.m. | |
| May 19 | Orioles at Blue Jays | 7:07 p.m. |
| Mariners at Braves | 7:20 p.m. | |
| May 26 | Padres at Yankees | 7:05 p.m. |
| White Sox at Tigers | 7:10 p.m. | |
| June 2 | Brewers at Reds | 5:10 p.m. |
| Guardians at Twins | 8:10 p.m. | |
| June 9 | Royals at Orioles | 7:05 p.m. |
| Mariners at Angels | 9:38 p.m. | |
| June 16 | Pirates at Brewers | 8:10 p.m. |
| White Sox at Mariners | 10:10 p.m. | |
| June 23 | Pirates at Marlins | 6:40 p.m. |
| Mets at Phillies | 7:05 p.m. | |
| June 30 | Brewers at Pirates | 7:05 p.m. |
| Diamondbacks at Angels | 9:38 p.m. |
Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is a subscription video streaming service for $9.99 a month that includes high-quality original shows and movies including Best Picture winner “CODA,” popular sitcom “Ted Lasso,” and dramas like “The Morning Show” and “Severance.” Apple TV+ is also home to MLB baseball games on Friday nights and MLS Season Pass.