The New MLB/ESPN Opening Day Problem
What are we doing here???
There’s nothing like opening up the MLB At Bat app and taking a look at the full MLB (and Diamondbacks) schedule.
Yesterday ESPN & FOX released their first set of nationally televised games.
Other than the 2023 National League Champs getting zero Sunday Night Baseball games, I noticed the Opening Day (3/28) national TV schedule hasn’t been released yet. I’ve been curious of this because last season ESPN only showed 2 MLB games on Opening Day, both later in the day (4 ET PHI vs TEX, 7 ET CHW vs HOU). The 2020 shortened season and 2022 1 week lockout delay threw off the normal Opening Day 4 game ESPN schedule that we saw in 2021 and usually every year prior.1
Moving to the 2 game ESPN Opening Day schedule is a massive mistake by the MLB. Opening Day is the #1 day on the baseball calendar that’ll attract the casual viewer. I used to really enjoy the 4 MLB games all day on ESPN. It’s a rare time where the entire baseball universe is watching one game and can react to it together. The excitement of that first 10 AM East Coast game as we collectively watch the first pitch of the season was awesome. I do really like all 30 teams starting on the same day vs the one or two Opening Night games MLB tried in the past, but going away from the ESPN all day coverage is just a bummer.
The latest ESPN/MLB TV contract gives us the reason as the why there’s only 1 or 2 games on ESPN during Opening Day. From ESPN back in 2021:
The five non Sunday Night Baseball games leaves little room for ESPN to add more than the one or two Opening Night games. ESPN has already announced they are airing the World Series Champion Texas Rangers opening night at 7:35 ET vs the Chicago Cubs. The weird 7:35 ET (6:35 in Texas) time slot tells me they probably are using just 1 game Opening Day, or selecting one of the many 4PM ET first pitch games on Opening Day.
Here is the full Opening Day schedule (2nd team listed is home, using AZ time):
10:10 AM
MIL vs NYM
12:05 PM
LAA vs BAL
ATL vs PHI
1:10 PM
WAS vs CIN
SF vs SD
STL vs LA
TOR vs TB
MIN vs KC
DET vs CHW
PIT vs MIA
NYY vs HOU
4:35 PM (ESPN Game)
CHC vs TEX
7:10 PM
CLE vs OAK (7:07 PM)
BOS vs SEA
COL vs ARI
I wouldn’t be shocked if ESPN uses their 2nd of 5 non Sunday Night Baseball games on Cardinals vs Dodgers to nationally televise Ohtani’s first game in LA. I can’t imagine a more interesting regular season game to air that will pull ratings this high.2
Now, if I were the MLB commissioner I would have continued to give ESPN full Opening Day coverage and air 4 national TV games. Typically ESPN would alternate ESPN and ESPN 2 all day, but with more sports being aired on ABC too (Monday Night Football and regular season NBA games for example), 4 games is such a no brainer. This is how I would schedule it:
10 AM - ESPN - ATL vs PHI (slide it up 2 hours)
1 PM - ABC - STL vs LA (Ohtani debut on real national TV like ABC)
4 PM - ESPN - CHC vs TEX (Ring ceremony always get primetime)
7 PM - ESPN 2 - COL vs ARI (WS runner up should a national TV Opening Day, under this precedent always schedule a great matchup too. For example the Yankees come to AZ 2nd, flip those series and have Yankees vs DBacks to finish Opening Day!)
ESPN’s current TV deal runs through 2028, with an opt out after 2025, so there’s a chance the 1 or 2 Opening Day game format has just 2 seasons left. The MLB and ESPN had something that wasn’t broke, but they tried to fix it. While MLB TV is phenomenal and MLB Big Inning is the greatest thing that’s ever happened to the MLB viewer, the good old fashioned day long ESPN Opening Day is missed by me at least.
-@GoldyHappens
ESPN in 2016 actually aired 7 MLB games in the first two days of the MLB season. This year some teams opened on a Sunday, others on Monday. All 2015 playoff teams got their Opening Days on ESPN though which is pretty cool.
ESPN is airing Ohtani’s first 2 Spring Training games on ESPN on 2/22 (Only MLB Spring Training game that day) and 2/23. I assume Spring Training games do not count against their 5 non-SNB games.