ESPN and MLB are going their separate ways, ending a 30-year partnership

The Disney-owned cable channel and Major League Baseball are ending their 30-year partnership, and ESPN will no longer carry MLB games after this season, including the Home Run Derby and Wild Card playoff round. 

The split comes after ESPN attempted to renegotiate a deal that is set to end with the current season. While the league had the right to air 30 regular-season games as well as the aforementioned matches from 2026 to 2028, the price tag on that was $550 million per year.

That’s a fair bit more than streaming services, including Apple and Roku, are paying for their rights deals, so ESPN was angling to reduce the fees. MLB balked at that, resulting in the decision to end the relationship.

“In recent years, we have seen ESPN scale back their baseball coverage and investment in a way that is not consistent with the sport’s appeal or performance on their platform,” MLB said in a statement posted on social media. “Given that MLB provides strong viewership, valuable demographics, and the exclusive right to cover unique events like the Home Run Derby, ESPN’s demand to reduce rights fees is simply unacceptable. As a result, we have mutually agreed to terminate our agreement.”

ESPN, in a statement, said it remained open to exploring new ways to serve MLB fans.

“In making this decision, we applied the same discipline and fiscal responsibility that has built ESPN’s industry-leading live events portfolio as we continue to grow our audience across linear, digital and social platforms,” it said.

The split between the league and the network comes as MLB is looking to consolidate its media rights. Teams today can set up their own local media deals, which can give an unfair advantage to teams in larger media markets, since MLB does not have a salary cap.

The New York Mets were the latest to take advantage of this, signing Juan Soto to a 15-year, $765 million contract in February.