Major League Baseball is stepping into a different stretch after reaching fresh media deals with Netflix, NBCUniversal, and ESPN. The new plan begins in 2026 and changes where fans will find some of the year’s biggest games. This caught plenty of attention because the broadcasting pattern has felt steady for a long time. Opening Night has lived in the same place for years, and Sunday matchups have followed a familiar path. Now the picture shifts. The real change comes in how fans will follow those moments, since the new plan spreads key games across several platforms.
How Fans Followed the Dodgers and Blue Jays Lead Up
The build-up to the Dodgers and Blue Jays meeting gathered at its own pace. The Dodgers sat at -140 with the Blue Jays at +122, and fans watched those lines as the first pitch got closer. As the week moved on, each game carried a bit more weight. People followed the steady run of updates, went through pitching notes, and kept an eye on how the matchup was being talked about in different places.
That kind of routine fits into the broader shift in how fans follow baseball, which is part of what the new media plan addresses. Some turned to national sites for injury notes while others read local pieces that focused on the clubhouse mood. Odds pages were in the mix too, since they often highlight pitching matchups in a way that blends numbers with the story around the teams. California has not licensed sports betting, so fans there often rely on comparison pages when choosing a provider. Those pages outline payment steps, how a site works on a phone, and which odds are available before placing a wager from California. Over in Toronto, the lines ran through Ontario’s regulated market, and fans there followed those numbers as part of keeping up with the talk before the series. All of it shaped how people tracked the story in the days before the opener.
Why Netflix Matters for Baseball Viewers
The new media agreement drew quick attention because Netflix will now carry Opening Night, the Home Run Derby, and the Field of Dreams game each year. That shift drops baseball into a place people already open without thinking, which can pull in viewers who drift in and out of the season.
The move folds into a plan that spreads national coverage across several outlets. NBCUniversal takes Sunday night baseball and the Wild Card Series on NBC and Peacock, marking the first time in about twenty-five years that NBC has held a weekly national baseball slot. The combined value of these three-year deals sits near eight hundred million dollars per season, with ESPN paying the largest share. The scale tells its own story about where MLB wants the sport to sit across the week.
How U.S. Fans Will Watch Games in 2026
The viewing experience changes a little in 2026, which is why many fans are already thinking ahead. Sunday night baseball sits on NBC, which brings the weekly showcase back to a major broadcast network. ESPN and MLB.TV handles the midweek national matchups, giving fans a familiar place to follow games during the week. Netflix steps in for Opening Night and its early-season special events, which add a spark to the start of the year.
Fans who watch games via local television can still watch games the same way as last year.” The bigger shifts appear on the national side. Fans will move across a few platforms depending on the night, which turns checking the schedule into part of the routine. It becomes a simple matter of knowing where each game lands as the season moves forward.
How the New Deal Shapes Big Moments
The Dodgers and Blue Jays run showed how strong a close postseason series can feel. Under the new plan, the World Series remains with Fox, while the early rounds land elsewhere. Each stage settles into its own slot, which shapes how fans follow the climb toward October.
Fans will adjust to the pattern without much trouble. Some may start the year on Netflix and move to their local channel the next night. Others may settle into NBC on Sundays. MLB.TV remains useful for out-of-market followings, which keeps the season reachable for people living far from their team’s home.
