Apple and Major League Baseball (MLB) announced that “Friday Night Baseball,” a weekly doubleheader, will be available to all Apple TV+ subscribers on Fridays throughout the regular season starting on Friday April 7.
Apple acquired the rights for the doubleheaders for an estimated $85 million and aired the first season of the games in 2022 for free. This year fans will need to pay $6.99 a month for Apple TV+ for two marquee matchups over 25 weeks with no local broadcast restrictions.
“We can’t wait for ‘Friday Night Baseball’ to start up again, and we’re excited for fans to experience everything new we’re bringing this season,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services. “Apple TV+ truly has something for everyone, from two live baseball games every Friday night, to an incredible slate of award-winning original films and series — there’s never been a better time to sign up.”
“Friday Night Baseball” will begin the 2023 season on Friday, April 7, with the Texas Rangers at the Chicago Cubs for the inaugural “Friday Night Baseball” daytime game at Chicago’s Wrigley Field, and the San Diego Padres at the Atlanta Braves.
“Friday Night Baseball” will be produced by MLB Network’s production team in partnership with Apple.
Each game will feature state-of-the-art cameras to present vivid live-action shots, and offer immersive sound in 5.1 with Spatial Audio enabled, the companies reported.
“Friday Night Baseball” will again utilize drone cameras for beautiful aerial stadium shots, as well as player mics and field-level mics to immerse fans in the gameplay and stadium atmosphere.
Fans in the U.S. and Canada will also have the option to listen to the audio of the home and away teams’ local radio broadcasts during “Friday Night Baseball” games.
In the U.S., the games will also be available in bars and restaurants via DirecTV for Business, which will deliver all the action to its network of more than 300,000 restaurants, bars, hotel lounges, retail shops, and other venues throughout the regular season on existing satellite equipment.
