Why Sling TV is an Excellent Choice as MLB Season Starts, NBA and NHL Seasons End
Sling TV may not carry regional sports networks, but it’s a perfect low-cost compliment to the growing number of in-market team streaming options available.
March is one of the most underrated sports months on the calendar. The 2024 MLB regular season is coming on Thursday, March 28, and the NBA and NHL seasons are heating up as the race for playoff seeding begins in earnest. The past year has seen myriad teams from all three leagues create new in-market streaming options, and many fans of those teams have likely cut the cord to save money and watch those streaming services instead of shelling out $80 per month or more for a cable plan that’s stuffed with channels they don’t watch. But if you’re one of these viewers and you find yourself missing networks like ESPN and TNT with national sports coverage, you have a great option available for watching these channels and saving money at the same time: Sling TV.
- Sling TV doesn’t carry any regional sports network, but it’s a perfect compliment to a streamer like Bally Sports+, MLB.TV or NESN 360.
- Once the NBA and NHL playoffs begin, Sling TV is a great way to watch every game at a low price.
- Sling starts at just $40 per month, but new customers can get a special discount of 50% off their first month of service.
Sling has always been an excellent value, but the number of NBA, NHL, and MLB teams that have created their own in-market streaming options has made it an increasingly attractive option for subscribers of such services. Sling offers a slimmed-down cable channel bundle, carrying only the essential channels and cutting out the fat for an extremely competitive price of $40 per month.
If you’re a fan of an MLB, NBA, or NHL team who plays on a Bally Sports regional sports network (RSN), you can stream them on Bally Sports+ for $19.99 per month. You can then pair that with and watch favorite cable channels like FX, USA Network, SyFy, and even NFL Network to keep up with the latest draft and free agency news on Sling’s Blue plan. That bumps your price up to just $60 per month to watch your favorite team’s regular season games, and there are no long-term commitments involved; you can cancel an in-market sports streaming service whenever you like, and the same holds true for Sling TV.
These savings don’t apply solely to Bally Sports+ customers; there are a host of regional sports streaming services available for in-market fans these days, and each of them can be added to a Sling account for watching the start of the MLB season and the end of the NBA and NHL campaigns in 2024. For example, there are three MLB teams who can be streamed in-market with an MLB.TV subscription this season, meaning viewers can skip an expensive subscription to Fubo ($91 per month or more) or DIRECTV STREAM’s Choice plan ($108.99 per month) to watch their top teams via RSNs. Keep in mind, if you live in a Sling market like New York or Los Angeles that offers ABC, NBC and Fox, you’ll have to pay an extra $5 per month on top of the prices listed below.
Monthly Costs for Sling TV Package and Regional Sports Streaming Services:
- Sling Blue + Bally Sports+: $60 (NHL, NBA, select MLB teams)
- Sling Blue + MLB.TV: $60 (Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, San Diego Padres)
- Sling Blue + YES App: $65 (New York Yankees, Brooklyn Nets)
- Sling Blue + NESN360: $70 (Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins)
- Sling Blue + MSG+: $70 (New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres)
Is Sling TV a Good Choice for Watching NBA, NHL Playoffs?
Since the NBA and NHL play the vast majority of their playoff games on ESPN and TNT, Sling is a great pick to see the postseasons of both leagues. You can switch between Sling’s Orange plan and its Blue plan at no cost when you sign up for the streamer, meaning if you sign up for Sling Blue to watch top entertainment channels during the end of the NBA and NHL regular seasons, you can change to Sling Orange for free come playoff time.
You’ll want to do that because Sling Orange carries ESPN and ESPN2, as well as TNT and TBS. This will set you up to stream most Stanley Cup playoff games from the NHL, and most of the NBA’s postseason contests as well. Sling Orange also carries ESPN3, meaning any playoff games from either league appearing on ABC will also be watchable, as that channel simulcasts all live sporting events appearing on ABC.
Best of all, Sling TV gives new customers a fantastic way to save big bucks. The streamer is currently allowing new subscribers to take 50% off their first month of service, so you can get 30 days of Sling for as little as $20. If you decide to combine the channels of Sling’s two plans into the Sling Orange and Blue tier, your price lowers from $55 to $27.50 for your first month.
In cable’s heyday, regional sports networks forced cable viewers to pay more for their plans whether they watched sports or not. Now customers have plenty of choices for watching their favorite local sports teams, as more clubs are offering in-market streaming options seemingly every day. Sling TV is the perfect way to complement those streaming choices in the NBA, NHL, and MLB regular seasons, and is also a fantastic choice for watching NHL and NBA playoff games.
Sling TV
Sling TV is a live TV streaming service that helps users save money with the option of two distinct plans. The $40/month “Sling Orange” plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $40/month “Sling Blue” plan offers about 40 channels, including Fox and NBC local channels.