How to watch Major League Baseball - the regular season comes to a close on October 3
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- Major League Baseball (MLB) will conclude its 162-game regular season on October 3.
- Nationally televised games are spread across ESPN, Fox, Fox Sports, TBS, and MLBN.
- You can also catch out-of-market games through ESPN+ and MLB TV.
After last season was shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic, Major League Baseball will successfully reach the end of its standard 162-game regular season on October 3. The final wild card spots and playoff seeding will be decided in these final games, with the postseason scheduled to begin with play-in games on October 5.
The top two wild card teams in each league will play single-elimination play-in games for the final seeds in the playoffs. Teams that win their division automatically earn a playoff seed, meaning the Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, and Milwaukee Brewers are already guaranteed playoff spots.
In the American League, the New York Yankees lead the wild card race by two games with the Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners, and Toronto Blue Jays all still vying for a spot. In the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Francisco Giants will host the St. Louis Cardinals for the play-in game.
Select regular season MLB games are broadcast nationally, while others are only available on local stations in certain markets. Unfortunately, there's no simple solution to catch every game, but to help narrow down your options, we compiled the best streaming services you can use to watch some of your favorite MLB stars in action.
MLB wild card race schedule
The final games of the MLB regular season will have heavy implications on playoff seeding in both the AL and NL. Below, we listed the games that will have the greatest impact on the wild card race and playoffs.
| Teams | Date and time | National broadcast/stream |
| Boston Red Sox at Washington Nationals | October 1, 7:05 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees | October 1, 7:05 p.m. ET | YES Network, MLB Network (only out of market) |
| Baltimore Orioles at Toronto Blue Jays | October 1, 7:07 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| San Diego Padres at San Francisco Giants | October 1, 9:45 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Los Angeles Angels at Seattle Mariners | October 1, 10:10 p.m. ET | MLB Network (only out of market) |
| Milwaukee Brewers at Los Angeles Dodgers | October 1, 10:10 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees | October 2, 1:05 p.m. ET | YES Network, MLB Network (only out of market) |
| Baltimore Orioles at Toronto Blue Jays | October 2, 3:07 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| San Diego Padres at San Francisco Giants | October 2, 4:05 p.m. ET | MLB Network (only out of market) |
| Boston Red Sox at Washington Nationals | October 2, 4:05 p.m. ET | ESPN+ |
| Milwaukee Brewers at Los Angeles Dodgers | October 2, 9:10 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Los Angeles Angels at Seattle Mariners | October 2, 9:10 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees | October 3, 3:05 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| San Diego Padres at San Francisco Giants | October 3, 3:05 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Boston Red Sox at Washington Nationals | October 3, 3:05 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Baltimore Orioles at Toronto Blue Jays | October 3, 3:07 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
| Milwaukee Brewers at Los Angeles Dodgers | October 3, 3:10 p.m. ET | TBS (out of market only) |
| Los Angeles Angels at Seattle Mariners | October 3, 3:10 p.m. ET | Local affiliates |
How to watch MLB games
The 2021 MLB regular season schedule featured 188 nationally televised games. National games are spread across MLB Network, ESPN, FS1, and Fox. Some games also streamed on YouTube.
If you don't have cable and you want to stream games playing on these networks, you have a few different options.
DirecTV Stream
DirecTV Stream features Fox, MLB Network, FS1, and ESPN in most of its plans. The cheapest plan with all four channels is the DirecTV Stream Choice plan for $85 a month. The Choice plan also gives you access to several regional sports networks for local games that aren't broadcast nationally.
DirecTV Stream provides local coverage for 20 of MLB's 30 teams, according to a spokesperson from the service. You can check to see if DirecTV Stream covers your regional sports network with this lookup tool.
YouTube TV
One of the most comprehensive options for streaming MLB games is YouTube TV. The service costs $65 a month and includes Fox, FS1, ESPN, and MLB Network, as well as some regional sports networks depending on your area.
YouTube TV also includes an option to watch out-of-market games via the MLB TV add-on for an extra fee. This means you can watch a mix of local games, nationally televised games, and out-of-market games all in one place.
Sling TV
Another option for MLB games is Sling TV. Sling Blue ($35/month) includes access to Fox (in select markets) and FS1. Sling Orange ($35/month), on the other hand, offers live access to ESPN. You can combine both Sling Blue and Sling Orange for $50 a month. You can also add MLB Network via Sling's Sports Extra package for an additional $15 a month.
This combo will get you Fox, FS1, ESPN, and MLB Network for $65 a month. Please note that Fox only airs in select markets, primarily in major US cities, via Sling TV.
Fubo TV
Fubo TV also offers a package that will get you all the channels you need for national MLB games. The streaming service's Starter plan has over 100 channels, including Fox, FS1, and ESPN. Fubo TV also offers access to MLB Network with its Sports Plus with NFL RedZone add-on for $11 a month. There's also a few regional sports networks in select areas.