As Major League Baseball attempts to move from the current Regional Sports Networks (RSN) model to a national broadcast package, the importance of local broadcasts is coming back into focus.
A national broadcast package could give fans more access to their favorite teams, potentially remove lockdown restrictions and provide a more streamlined viewing experience. At the same time, the league’s consideration of a national broadcast package reflects a broader trend in sports media, with leagues and teams increasingly seeking to capitalize on the growth of streaming services.
But by capitalizing on growth and trying to grow the game, the league risks alienating its fans. There is a deep-rooted bond between fans of their favorite team and their local broadcaster, and it’s an unbreakable bond that the league is constantly trying to test.
This will be clearly visible this weekend.
While there is certainly something appealing about moving away from local broadcasts in favor of a national model, there are certain downsides. Some downsides are more tangible than others, but it’s worth noting that a weekend series between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Series underscores how important local broadcasts are to a local fan base.
This weekend, Major League Baseball deprived Mets fans of the opportunity to hear their beloved live commentator Gary Cohen and analysts Ron Darling and Keith Hernandez. Readers of Awful Announcing voted them the best commentary booth in the sport for a reason, and with the Mets in a crucial battle for the championship, MLB has given the Mets and their fans the middle finger.
Three of four games of the final home game of the 2024 regular season, which could decide the team’s playoff fate, will not be broadcast on SNY. Instead, Thursday’s game aired on Fox, while the New York Jets played their first home game, which was shown on local Fox affiliate stations and additionally streamed on Amazon’s Prime Video, meaning Mets-Phillies aired on WWOR (Channel 9) in the New York area.
It’s a Fox exclusive, but the Jets were seen locally on Fox 5. The tie doesn’t go to the team in the championship race, as the Mets were moved to another channel in the New York area, and no, the game wasn’t available on SNY. Friday will be on Apple TV+, while Sunday’s game will be on ESPN.
That means Cohen, Darling and Hernandez only have to make one call on Saturday. And while Major League Baseball is looking to take advantage of one of the teams in the biggest markets fighting tooth and nail for the last wild-card spot in the National League, it is robbing its fans of a unique, personal experience.
Benching a commentary staff as important to the team as Grimace is certainly a decision that can be made, and while it would be presumptuous of us to claim that the Mets fan base has the strongest bond with its commentators than any other in the league, it could certainly be argued that way.
This isn’t meant to be a dig at the national broadcasters, but they don’t have as much at stake as the Gary Cohens of this world. Cohen has been a Mets fan since he was a kid and wears his enthusiasm on his sleeve. He’s by no means a decoy, but when it’s time for him to seize the moment, there’s no one better than him.
And in a season full of moments, you ask the passion of the SNY booth to take a back seat, even though the Mets hold a slim two-game lead over the Atlanta Braves for the final wild-card spot. In the midst of a four-game series against a division rival at the end of the season, people want to hear their local commentators.
These games aren’t just background noise, they’re ones where fans are there for every pitch. There’s no fan base like the New York Mets that lives and dies with every pitch, just ask Jeff Passan. But with less than 10 games left, every single pitch counts – and means something.
Just like every single word the SNY crew utters; after all, it is the crucial phase.
In an effort to grow the game and expand its reach, Major League Baseball may be risking one of its most sacred bonds – the connection between local fans and their beloved television teams. For Mets fans in particular, this weekend’s series isn’t just another set of games; it’s part of their identity.
Taking away the voices of Gary Cohen, Ron Darling and Keith Hernandez at such a crucial time feels like a betrayal. As MLB looks to the future, it must remember that hearing these familiar voices comment on every pitch in the heat of the championship race is just as important to Mets fans as the game itself.
