Local Rules in Baseball Broadcasting

Baseball is at its best when brought to you by local broadcasters — a fact that always seems to elude MLB's "brain trust."

My parents separated when I was very young. I had few memories of my father until I went and found him in my early twenties. I was not close to my grandfather, either. In fact, I had no male role model in my life at all. It was left to me to decide which sports teams I would root for, although the limitations of broadcast television played a significant role. In those days, entertainment still came into houses over an antenna.

Apple TV, Peacock ... Anything for a Buck

Every year, MLB forces its fans to work harder to find where their team's games are broadcast.

Back in olden times, when I first became a fan of the New York Mets, not all games were televised. However, there was one easy way to check if you weren't sure: you walked over to your television and tuned it to WOR, Channel 9. It was easy to keep track of, and — as long as you had an antenna capable of tuning in Channel 9 — you could enjoy every broadcast Mets game for free.