Max Scherzer’s Mets Debut Will Be Apple TV+ Opener, Will Stream for Free
Apple TV+ will be kicking off its first foray into live sports with a highly anticipated reunion. When the streamer airs its first Major League Baseball game in its new “Friday Night Baseball” package on April 8, fans will be able to watch three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer face off against his former team, assuming pitching rotations hold over the next two weeks.
According to the Washington Post, Scherzer’s current team — the New York Mets — will take on his former team — the Washington Nationals — in one of the two games that are scheduled to be a part of Apple TV+’s initial doubleheader. The other game has yet to be announced.
When the package was announced earlier this month, the streaming service touted that “Friday Night Baseball” games would not be subject to local blackout rules like games on the league’s streaming service MLB.TV are, so fans in New York, the DMV region, and across the country will be able to watch one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball history face off against the team that he helped lead to the World Series title in 2019.
After being traded from the Nationals to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the trade deadline last season, Scherzer signed a three-year, $130 million contract with the Mets in December.
In addition to a limited time offer that will allow fans to watch “Friday Night Baseball” without a subscription to the streaming service, the high-profile matchup between Scherzer and his former team should help Apple draw viewers to its first live MLB game.
In addition to the “Friday Night Baseball” doubleheader, as the season starts, baseball fans will be able to watch “MLB Big Inning,” a show similar to the “NFL RedZone” that bounces between broadcasts to bring fans can’t-miss highlights from all of the games around the league. Apple TV+ and MLB recently announced that the show will expand this season from airing only on weeknights — as it has in the past — to airing seven nights per week.
At the start of the season, “Friday Night Baseball” will be available on Apple TV+ in the United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Korea, and the United Kingdom.
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.