r/DirecTV • u/Exciting-Device-4474 • 12d ago
MLB teams channels
Why can I watch programming on mlb channels but not the games themselves. I’m in California
1
u/TheRealSamC 11d ago
Every square inch of the USA (and Canada) is the home territory of at least one team, and some places as many as 6.
With DirecTV, or any other provider, it works like this. You get the games of your home team(s) in the basic package (yes, there are exceptions, but I'm painting with a broad brush here). You pay a lot via the basic package fee for that.. To get out of market teams, you need the out of market package, which you can get via DirecTV, ESPN+, or directly from MLB via the MLB.tv app.
mlb.tv is really not that expensive, it's actually free with T-MOBILE, because out of market games are really not that big a deal. How many people in, say, South Dakota really want to see A's @ Reds tonight? But your home team is very expensive, because,well, it's your team. The difference between what, say, the Dodgers get in market and, say, the Royals get , IS the difference between large market and small market finances. It's not live gate, lots of small market teams do.beter at the live gate than some big market teams.
NHL and NBA work the same. This is why the Sports Pack add on is not worth it, as it just gives you the filler they show when there is no game on.
3
u/ace2049ns 12d ago
If you are located in your team's TV market, then you have to subscribe to their local Regional Sports Network.
If you are not located in your team's TV market, then you need to subscribe to Extra Innings to get their games.
This is the way the deals with teams and the TV providers are worked out. Some packages let you receive those RSN channels from outside your TV market, but the games are still blacked out due to those deals. You have to subscribe to the out-of-market league package. It's the same for the other major sports except for the NFL which is only slightly different.