How To Watch Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV: 2026 Schedule & Streaming Tips
Apple TV is home to Friday Night Baseball, and we've checked all the bases to determine if the streaming service is worth it for MLB fans.
Friday Night Baseball is a weekly Major League Baseball (MLB) doubleheader available to watch across 25 Friday nights during the MLB regular season. Produced by MLB Network, the live broadcast streams exclusively on Apple TV.
Before you step up to the plate with Apple TV, we’ll explain what MLB content the service offers—including an up-to-date Friday Night Baseball TV schedule.
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Is Apple TV worth it for MLB fans?
Apple TV is the perfect streaming service for casual baseball fans. For $12.99 a month, you’ll get two live games each week on top of a sizeable collection of on-demand MLB content.
The in-game experience on Apple TV is more unique than your average MLB broadcast. Every Friday Night Baseball game comes equipped with advanced statistical overlays with on-screen graphics that match the visual design of Apple’s widely familiar branding—including Apple Music pop-up boxes that show batters’ walk-up songs.
On top of its MLB offerings, Apple TV has MLS Sunday Night Soccer games and a diverse library of on-demand movies and TV shows. Its quantity of content is nowhere near what you would see on Netflix or HBO Max, but there are many quality series like “Severance,” “Ted Lasso,” and “The Morning Show.”
2026 Friday Night Baseball TV schedule
Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV returns for the 2026 MLB season on March 27, just one day after Opening Day. The full schedule as we know it is below, and I’ll update it as more matchups are announced.
Data effective as of post date.
MLB content on Apple TV
In addition to live Friday Night Baseball broadcasts, Apple TV is home to several on-demand MLB Network programs. It’s all available on the Apple TV Major League Baseball hub page, which you can access by scrolling down on the app’s Originals tab or the website’s home page.
Two great offerings for MLB fans on Apple TV are All MLB, All Day and MLB Big Inning. All MLB, All Day is a 24/7 channel that plays various MLB Network series, game replays, and news updates, while MLB Big Inning is a nightly show that provides live look-ins and highlights from around the league.
If you prefer to watch things on your own schedule, you can still tune in to all recaps and Friday Night Baseball game replays at any time on demand. There are also a lot of docuseries and studio shows available to watch as you wait for the next Friday night matchups to come around.
MLB shows on Apple TV
- “All-Century Team”
- “All-Star Highlights”
- “Baseball’s Seasons”
- “Cathedrals of the Game”
- “Countdown to First Pitch”
- “Epic Moments”
- “Fenway Park 100 Years”
- “Great Games”
- “Inside the Moments”
- “MLB 25: Greatest Postseason Home Runs”
- “MLB Network Countdown”
- “MLB This Week”
- “MLB Ultimate Lineup”
- “Outta Here”
- “Play Ball”
- “Prime 9”
- “This Week in Baseball”
- “Top of the Order”
- “World Series Film”
- “Wrigley Field 100 Years”
Other options for watching MLB games
Live MLB games are scattered across several different viewing options. It’s an unfortunately daunting fact, which we explain in more detail on our How To Watch MLB Games page.
If you want access to the most MLB games possible, we recommend DIRECTV. The satellite TV service carries all the necessary MLB channels and offers one of the largest assortments of regional sports networks (RSNs)—which you’ll need for locally televised games. Plus, you can add MLB EXTRA INNINGS® to your DIRECTV plan for complete out-of-market coverage.
Pro tip: Nationally televised MLB games air on FOX, FS1, TBS, ESPN, and MLB Network. These are also the same channels that will air the entire MLB Playoffs.
While Apple TV is a cheap way to watch MLB games online, it’s not the only streaming option. MLB.TV exists for cord-cutters who want the same out-of-market game count as MLB EXTRA INNINGS.
Unlock live sports on Apple TV
Apple TV is one of the most inexpensive ways to stream live MLB games during the regular season. At $12.99 a month, the streaming service hosts every Friday Night Baseball matchup. It also offers a wide selection of MLB Network–produced content—including the weeknight MLB Big Inning whip-around show.
Friday Night Baseball was the first live sport to join Apple TV. Starting in 2026, you can watch every Major League Soccer match through the service. Plus, Formula One has just moved to the streamer as well.
If soccer isn’t your thing, Apple TV is still one of the best streaming services because of its content quality. That alone is worth a look—even if you only use a free trial at first.
MLB on Apple TV FAQ
Are MLB games free on Apple TV?
No, Friday Night Baseball games aren't free on Apple TV during the 2026 MLB season. While Apple TV offered select games for free in 2022, you'll need its $12.99-a-month subscription for complete access.
Is Friday Night Baseball only on Apple TV?
Yes, Friday Night Baseball programming is exclusive to Apple TV. But commercial venues like bars and restaurants can still show Friday Night Baseball games with a DIRECTV FOR BUSINESS satellite subscription.
Who is calling Friday Night Baseball?
Lauren Gardner hosts Friday Night Baseball pregame and postgame coverage with Xavier Scruggs and Russell Dorsey, while Wayne Randazzo and Alex Faust split play-by-play duties. Additional commentators include analysts Dontrelle Willis and Ryan Spilborghs, along with sideline reporters Heidi Watney and Tricia Whitaker.
What time does Friday Night Baseball start?
Usually, Friday Night Baseball on Apple TV is a doubleheader. The first game airs earlier in the evening, while the second is on primetime a few hours later. Some slates have games starting at similar times, leaving it up to fans to choose which to watch first.
Why you should trust us
Our CableTV.com sports editor, Taylor Kujawa, spent over 12 hours researching and streaming MLB content on Apple TV to determine the streaming service’s worth for baseball fans. He examined Apple TV alongside comparable services that offer live MLB games—like ESPN Unlimited and MLB.TV—by looking at pricing, MLB game count, and on-demand content quantity.
Check out our How We Rank page to learn more about our methods.
