How To Stream MLB Games: Facebook To Air 25 Games In 2018

With opening day right around the corner, Facebook announced Friday that it reached a deal with Major League Baseball (MLB) for the exclusive rights to steam 25 afternoon games on the social networks' video platform.

The agreement marks the first exclusive deal between Facebook and a professional sports league in the United States. Neither Facebook nor MLB disclosed the terms of the agreement, but Bloomberg reported the deal was priced at between $30 million to $35 million.

The games that will be broadcast on Facebook will all be afternoon games, primarily on Wednesdays. The first game that will be broadcast on the platform will be a matchup between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets at Citi Field in New York on April 4. The game will start at 1:10 p.m. EST.

The rest of the lineup for April will include the Milwaukee Brewers visiting the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday, April 11 at 1:15 p.m. EST; the Kansas City Royals playing the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday, April 18 at 4:07 p.m. EST; and the Arizona Diamondbacks versus the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday, April 26 at 1:05 p.m. EST.

The schedule for the rest of the season has not yet been released. MLB said in a statement that each additional monthly broadcast schedule will be announced during the season, and games are subject to change.

All of the games broadcast on Facebook will be produced by MLB Network, the league’s internal production team, so the broadcast will have a familiar feel to the average fewer. To differentiate the games being streamed on social network, the games will include social integrations that will only be available during Facebook broadcasts.

Games broadcast on Facebook will also provide users with the flexibility to watch on any screen. The streamed matchups can be watched on mobile devices including smartphones and tablets, computers, as well as connected devices and smart TVs.

While Facebook’s streaming rights are exclusive only to the United States, the social network will also have the rights to broadcast the games globally, giving viewers outside of the U.S. an alternative way to watch games.

In addition to the game broadcasts, MLB will also provide Facebook with other baseball-related content that it can stream and broadcast on its platform, including highlight reels from games not streamed on Facebook and team-specific recap videos for every team in the league.

"This partnership with Facebook reflects the ongoing commitment of Major League Baseball and our Clubs to connect with people around the world," Tony Petitti, Deputy Commissioner of Business and Media for MLB, said in a statement . "It is a major creative step forward in serving our diverse, passionate community of fans, who will enjoy a uniquely interactive experience watching our games on Facebook each week."

"We're excited to extend our partnership with Major League Baseball to make Facebook Watch a home for exclusive, live games every week this season," Dan Reed, Facebook Head of Global Sports Partnerships, said. "Community and conversation are central to both baseball and Facebook, and MLB Network's innovative broadcasts will bring these interactive and social elements of the game to life to fans around the world in new ways on our platform."