Six Major League Baseball teams are cutting ties with regional sports network operator Main Street Sports. Starting in the 2026 season, MLB will produce their local game broadcasts directly.
Main Street Sports has faced escalating financial troubles and the broader industry trend of cord-cutting. This shift could change how fans watch local baseball and affect team finances in unpredictable ways.
The Exodus from Main Street Sports
Regional sports networks (RSNs) have felt unstable for a while, and now it’s official. These six MLB clubs are leaving because Main Street Sports has missed payments and failed to find a buyer.
Which Teams Are Making the Switch?
Six MLB franchises have formally ended their contracts with Main Street Sports. They’re hoping for a more stable, direct broadcasting solution.
- Milwaukee Brewers: Their passionate fanbase will now catch local games under MLB’s umbrella.
- Miami Marlins: They’re aiming to grow their market and reach fans in new ways.
- Kansas City Royals: As they look to future contention, they need reliable broadcast access.
- St. Louis Cardinals: This storied franchise wants to keep local broadcasts widely accessible.
- Cincinnati Reds: Their dedicated following gets new streaming options with this change.
- Tampa Bay Rays: Known for innovation, they’re now trying a new broadcast model too.
MLB Steps Up to the Plate: A New Broadcasting Model
MLB isn’t just reacting—they’ve been preparing for this. The league built a local-media unit to handle RSN instability and manage regional broadcasts directly.
How Does MLB’s Interim Solution Work?
MLB will now handle responsibilities that RSNs used to cover. This centralized approach should simplify things for fans and, hopefully, cut down on headaches.
- Producing Games: MLB will produce local broadcasts from start to finish.
- Distribution Agreements: The league will negotiate directly with platforms so fans can actually watch the games.
- Advertising Sales: MLB will run local ad sales, which is a big revenue source.
- Local Streaming via MLB.tv: The plan is to end those annoying local blackouts, letting fans stream games on MLB.tv, now owned by ESPN under a new media-rights deal.
The Financial Curveball: Impact on Team Revenue
This move should help fans get easier access to games—no more blackouts—but it’s a real financial curveball for teams. The old RSN model, for all its faults, gave teams a steady revenue stream.
Loss of Lucrative Cable Deals
Fixed revenue from cable deals made up about 20-30% of a team’s total income. Losing those contracts could hit team finances hard and maybe even affect player payrolls.
MLB and the players’ union once agreed to use some luxury-tax overage funds to cover local-media losses, but that was a one-off. The financial challenge isn’t going away.
What About Other Main Street Partners?
Main Street Sports started the year with rights to 29 NBA, NHL, and MLB teams. Now, its portfolio keeps shrinking.
The Remaining MLB Franchises
Out of Main Street’s nine MLB partners, three haven’t announced their next move. More departures seem likely, if you believe the reports.
- Atlanta Braves: Their broadcast future is still up in the air.
- Los Angeles Angels: Rumor has it they might also go with MLB’s model.
- Detroit Tigers: They’re reportedly thinking about a shift to MLB too.
Main Street Sports still broadcasts some NBA and NHL games and says it’s talking with those leagues. But honestly, its future looks shaky, with liquidation a real possibility.
The Broader Cord-Cutting Conundrum
This whole mess really shows just how much the regional-cable RSN model is falling apart. Cord-cutting keeps picking up steam, and rescue deals keep falling through—remember that DAZN sale that went nowhere?
Main Street missed payments over and over, pushing teams to look for help from the league itself. Sports broadcasting is changing fast, and honestly, MLB stepping in feels like a sign of things to come for fans wanting to watch their local teams.
Here is the source article for this story: Sources: 5 teams to leave Main Street, join MLB
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