
We've known for a while that Major League Baseball was following in the footsteps of the NBA, NFL and NHL by taking the plunge into buying their own cable channel. The channel is expected to be available by next season, and unlike all the hoops you may have to jump through to get the offerings put forth by some of the other leagues, MLB has gone through great lengths to ensure the average fan will have easy access.
Consider this:
the New York Times reports that the MLB Network will have 50 million subscribers from Day 1. The NFL Network, on the other hand,
debuted with just 12 million subscribers in 2003 and took three whole years to build their base to 41 million subscribers.
Baseball fans who are excited about the network will probably want to read that entire
NY Times article, which details the progress MLB is making in building its $54 million studio and offers some details about the programming, which will include a flagship "MLB Tonight" show that airs nightly from 7pm to 1am offering live updates and highlights.
If done correctly, "MLB Tonight" could easily top ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" in terms of being
the must-watch show for fans, especially considering it'll have control of two robotic cameras installed in each stadium, theoretically giving viewers a different angle for highlights not found anywhere else. But what will the network show the other 18 hours a day?