Sports

In the Dark? Why Many Pirates Fans May Not See Game 2

The second game of the National League Division Series between the Pirates and Cardinals will be shown only on MLB Network.

Watching Game 2 of the NLDS between Pittsburgh and St. Louis might be a bigger challenge than first thought for fans.

First there's the time of the game, 1 p.m., when most people are usually (ahem) at work.

But a bigger problem may be that the game won't be carried on any of the local channels, TBS, or Root Sports.

MLB Network owns the exclusive broadcast rights to Game 2 and the league isn't going to intervene on behalf of Pirates fans who either don't have access to MLB Network, or whom aren't signed up.

"We are extremely disappointed that a portion of our valued fan base may be unable to watch Friday's game on MLB Network because their local TV provider has refused to carry MLB Network," Pirates senior director of communications Brian Warecki told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "This is something that is completely out of control of the club."

MLB Network is distributed to 71 million homes nationwide, or 62-percent of all households. TBS, which aired Tuesdays wild-card game, is available in 100 million homes nationwide, or 88-percent of all households, the PG reported.

Verizon FIOS and Comcast XFINITY say most of their subscribers have access to the network, the paper reported.

Click here to see if your cable provider offers MLB Network.


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