194 replies to this topic

[curly2]

Is it me or is MLB TV particularly bad tonight in terms of freezing up?

[luqin]

FYI, If you've got a Playstation 3, MLB.TV is free this weekend. You can download the app for free from the playstation store. Worth checking out if you haven't seen it.

[SoxScout]

life changing find: Fullscreen MLB.TV on Dual Screen Setups

[Spacemans Bong]

I wish they'd show the normal commercials for each team rather than the dreadful low-budget ads they do for MLB.com shop or MLB At Bat.

[SoxScout]

Missed a $99 promo at Christmas time, and 2011 just launched at $120. I'll hold off for a while to see if any promo codes surface.... but this made it a lock that I'll be buying:

Alternate audio options: Overlay the home or away teams' radio broadcasts over the live video or use the "Park" option to include the ballpark's natural sounds.

http://mlb.mlb.com/n...ws_mlb&c_id=mlb

HOLY FUCK, this is the best thing to happen to baseball broadcasts since replay.

Edited by SoxScout, 12 February 2011 - 02:41 AM.

[Omar's Wacky Neighbor]

Missed a $99 promo at Christmas time, and 2011 just launched at $120. I'll hold off for a while to see if any promo codes surface....

Same here: I've got "mlb.tv" in my instant deal alerts at both Fat Wallet and Slick Deals. Will post if I get any hits.

[yeahlunchbox]

Here's a deal if you guys have a PS3 and play MLB The Show. If you preorder the game you get a one month trial of MLB.TV Premium:

FREE 30 days of Premium MLB.TV® when you reserve and purchase MLB® The Show™ ‘11 for the PlayStation 3! Your FREE MLB.TV® Premium trial gives live access to every regular-season MLB® game on your PlayStation 3 in true HD with superior picture optimization and DVR-controls. For all live games, watch from the beginning of a game, pause and resume, or proceed directly to live action. Don’t miss a game! Premium MLB.TV® trial members will have full access to all archived games from the 2011 MLB® season. Premium MLB.TV® trial members also have the option of watching the Home or Away feed so you can follow your team wherever they go.

How to get your FREE 30 days of Premium MLB.TV®:
1) Reserve MLB® The Show '11 for the PlayStation 3.
2) Receive your access code to FREE 30 days of Premium MLB.TV®when you pick up and purchase your reserved PlayStation 3 copy of MLB® The Show ’11.
3) Redeem your access code at ps3.com/mlbtv.
a. If redeemed before 3/31/11, get immediate access through 4/30/11.
b. If redeemed after 3/31, gain access for 30 days.
c. Codes must be redeemed by 4/30/11, to end on 5/30/11.

Reserve MLB® The Show™ '11 today!!!
Amazon | GameStop


The game comes out on 3/8, so according to this if you redeem your code immediately you should get access to most of spring training plus the first month of the regular season.

[joyofsox]

... or use the "Park" option to include the ballpark's natural sounds.

Can you have *only* the park sounds and no announcing?

[JMDurron]

I would be all over this instead of Extra Innings if I trusted my cable internet throughput more than I do. I'll have to test this out during the free preview this year.

[Oogies Loogies]

Can you have *only* the park sounds and no announcing?

They added this to MLBtv premium late last year and yes, it is only the park sounds with none of the announcing. It's fantastic. IIRC, you don't even have to listen to the overdubbed music everyone plays at the end of each inning. Just the noise from the ballpark, obviously supplied by the TV broadcast microphones.

I found myself using this option about 95 percent of the time last year, 100 percent of the time when I was watching the Yanks, Indians or White Sox. And the rest of the time, when I decided to have announcers (usually if I was doing something else on the computer or only half paying attention), I would use the radio audio. About the only time I'd make a point to keep the TV audio was to listen to Scully or the Mets guys.

[joyofsox]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!

I did not know this existed last year! (I have said in the past I'd pay double (maybe triple for ESPN games) for that feature.)

[JMDurron]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!

I did not know this existed last year! (I have said in the past I'd pay double (maybe triple for ESPN games) for that feature.)

You would still be subject to the blackout rules, so that wouldn't help during the ESPN Sunday Night games.

[savage362]

I was going to sign up for MLB.TV this season since I no longer have cable at my apartment. Turns out, the Sox are blacked out up here in VT. Looks like I'll save myself $100 and watch the games with free online streams instead.

I'm really surprised MLB hasn't found a way to limit/remove the blackout restrictions yet.

[donutogre]

I was going to sign up for MLB.TV this season since I no longer have cable at my apartment. Turns out, the Sox are blacked out up here in VT. Looks like I'll save myself $100 and watch the games with free online streams instead.

I'm really surprised MLB hasn't found a way to limit/remove the blackout restrictions yet.

It is a shame, but not terribly surprising. If I could get Red Sox baseball through some internet source, I absolutely would cancel my cable. As it is I'm thinking about that anyway. I'd be happy to divert those cost savings to seeing more games in person, or at the bar and spending the money on beer instead

[Doctuh]

I have been a long time MLB.tv subscriber, a few things to note:

They have a ton of blackout restrictions, so beware. If there is a remote chance you can get NESN you won't get Sox. That being said, their detection technology has some flaws, I am in Maine and was blacked out of New York. Heh. If a team us blacked out for you and are playing the Sox, you do not get it. Also no baseball on Saturday afternoons at all. Fox gets to black out everything, even if they are not showing the game you want.

You can use this subscription on iPads/Phones/Pods but you will have to pay extra (every year) for the apps to run it.

Things will not work right till the All Star break. Some things never work, but are always advertised (live DVR I am looking at you). Park audio is new this year so it wont work for a long time. The Radio/Video synch never happened either.

The Post-season is entirely extra and does not cover (in the USA) any of the broadcast feeds, just the cameras.

You also get the "condensed game" which is actually awesome and under-advertised. It is a game with only ballpark sound, the last swing of every at bat. Makes a full game like 12 minutes *And* it works on the iDevices.

In short: MLB.tv is awesome. For the price of an ok Sox ticket you get a season of great baseball watching. Do it!

[Spacemans Bong]

Complaining about blackouts is old hat. I understand if you live in bizarro blackout hell and you can't get a team that isn't remotely available on local cable, but if not, then what's your beef? No major sport provides blackout free internet subscriptions. It's only going to piss off local cable companies and advertisers. The Red Sox likely make more money on a person watching on NESN as compared to MLB.TV so there is little motivation for them or other clubs to change the policy.

[Spacemans Bong]

I have been a long time MLB.tv subscriber, a few things to note:

They have a ton of blackout restrictions, so beware. If there is a remote chance you can get NESN you won't get Sox. That being said, their detection technology has some flaws, I am in Maine and was blacked out of New York. Heh. If a team us blacked out for you and are playing the Sox, you do not get it. Also no baseball on Saturday afternoons at all. Fox gets to black out everything, even if they are not showing the game you want.

You can use this subscription on iPads/Phones/Pods but you will have to pay extra (every year) for the apps to run it.

Things will not work right till the All Star break. Some things never work, but are always advertised (live DVR I am looking at you). Park audio is new this year so it wont work for a long time. The Radio/Video synch never happened either.

The Post-season is entirely extra and does not cover (in the USA) any of the broadcast feeds, just the cameras.

You also get the "condensed game" which is actually awesome and under-advertised. It is a game with only ballpark sound, the last swing of every at bat. Makes a full game like 12 minutes *And* it works on the iDevices.

In short: MLB.tv is awesome. For the price of an ok Sox ticket you get a season of great baseball watching. Do it!

Some thoughts from a long-time subscriber (since 2004):

1) The app is awesome. Yeah they double dip by charging you $14.99 for the app, but it is really great. It's as good as any app on iTunes and way better than what the other sports are offering. With 3G the quality is excellent and it's worth it just for the audio. You don't know how awesome it feels to be living overseas and listening to Joe C/DOB while doing grocery shopping. The audio isn't blacked out either so if you don't still have a portable radio you can listen to it while doing grocery shopping too. The highlights are really handy as well; it's fun to flip through big plays from different games and they also upload the condensed games.

However, the app on PS3 is free and is unbelievably amazing. The quality is fantastic and there's hardly any dropped frames. MLB.TV has been very good about making it available on alternate platforms like PS3, Boxee, Roku, etc. The list is long.

2) There's always some hiccups at the start of the year but since 2009 they've settled on a platform (Flash) and it's always worked well for me. If something gets buggy, just get rid of it. NexDef has always sucked for me, so I got rid of it. The games were still in HD despite what MLB says about needing to download it to be in HD, and I didn't miss the DVR function that much (hopefully they do fix it).

3) The radio/TV sync is new this year, no? It will probably be buggy for the first month, but I've found that MLB generally fixes things pretty quickly (now that it's not a disaster like Silverlight). Nobody watches spring training games and then Opening Day is probably as big a day for demand as any in the season, so it is understandable why every year people complain.

4) If you can, get Premium. As much as I don't really enjoy Jerry Remy, it beats having to listen to road broadcasters when you're abroad. That and PIP are the two biggest reasons to get Premium.

It's a very, very good product and even more so for the price. It's the same price it was in 2008, which is pretty cool.

[dirtynine]

Complaining about blackouts is old hat. I understand if you live in bizarro blackout hell and you can't get a team that isn't remotely available on local cable, but if not, then what's your beef? No major sport provides blackout free internet subscriptions. It's only going to piss off local cable companies and advertisers. The Red Sox likely make more money on a person watching on NESN as compared to MLB.TV so there is little motivation for them or other clubs to change the policy.

I'm with you here - dealing with blackouts is par for the course. My only rejoinder to this is: there has to be a price point that makes in-market streaming a financial winner for all parties. Even if it's a few hundred bucks a year for the consumer, much of which would flow back to NESN/Fox/whomever to compensate for lost ad revenue. I don't understand why MLB can't do the math, figure out a fee that makes sense (and maybe even makes everybody more money) and offer it as an option to the consumer. That's all it has to be - an option. Right now I can't offer MLB any amount of money for a season of in-market streamed games, and that's stupid.

[steeplechase3k]

That's all it has to be - an option. Right now I can't offer MLB any amount of money for a season of in-market streamed games, and that's stupid.

As long as it's just an option. I'm 3000 miles away and I'd be pretty pissed if my cost suddenly doubled (or whatever) to allow "in market" games when the only team I really want to watch isn't in my market.

I also agree with Bonger and Doctah about how amazing mlb.tv and mlbatbat apps are. When I'm still at work in the evening I turn on the audio on my droid and listen to the Red Sox game, it skips 2-3 times (often in the same place as I take the train home), then listen in my car and when I get home I pull up the game on my laptop and watch the rest of it.

The Premium is worth every penny to me so I can always listen to the Red Sox broadcast rather than the other team's feed, and I'm STOKED about being able to put the radio feed on too, so that way when I'm doing something else on my computer I can get a better picture of what is going on when I'm not looking at the video.

And the condensed game friggin rocks. about 4-5 hours after the game is over you get a cut down version of the game showing everything important (the end of each at bat). Someone said there is no audio, but I thought there was and it's all cut up, but it's a great way to watch a game the next day when I wasn't home to watch it, and the DVR feature it a bit buggy, but it's also great. I got home after not having time to listen to the game and you can jump back and watch any scoring innings.

[Spacemans Bong]

I don't think in-market games will ever really happen unless it's a partnership with a cable company.

It just throws up way too many issues with the all-for-one one-for-all revenue sharing that MLBAM is built on and the pricing would have to be exorbitant, therefore, to make it worth the while.

[Soxy Brown]

4) If you can, get Premium. As much as I don't really enjoy Jerry Remy, it beats having to listen to road broadcasters when you're abroad. That and PIP are the two biggest reasons to get Premium.

If I'm reading this correctly, the audio options are included in the regular package. For an extra $20, Premium gives you the choice of video feed, DVR controls, and PIP. I can live without those three features so long as I can choose my audio option. According to the MLB.TV site, you can choose any home or away audio feed (TV or radio), plus the bare park sounds, without paying for Premium.

I've been an Extra Innings guy for years, but since I have a PS3 and an iPod Touch, the $100 or so cost savings of MLB.TV seems to be worth it. One question I have: do the PS3 feeds have 5.1 sound, or is it stereo only? Not a deal-breaker, but it would be nice to have true surround sound.

[OzSox]

If I'm reading this correctly, the audio options are included in the regular package. For an extra $20, Premium gives you the choice of video feed, DVR controls, and PIP. I can live without those three features so long as I can choose my audio option. According to the MLB.TV site, you can choose any home or away audio feed (TV or radio), plus the bare park sounds, without paying for Premium.

That does seem right, but I think having the NESN audio overlaying a different video stream would be more annoying than parting with the extra $20. Every time either broadcast cuts to a sideline reporter, or a pre-taped interview or whatever, you'd be out of sync.

[Soxy Brown]

That does seem right, but I think having the NESN audio overlaying a different video stream would be more annoying than parting with the extra $20. Every time either broadcast cuts to a sideline reporter, or a pre-taped interview or whatever, you'd be out of sync.

Stuff like that wouldn't annoy me. The main concern is when/if the delay is different, like the pitcher hasn't released the ball yet and I'm already hearing the crack of the bat. That would obviously render the alternate audio feed useless. I'll probably end up listening to the ambient park sounds more often than not, so I'm not really concerned. I'm just not sure having my choice of video feed is worth $20 by itself, as it's the only thing in the Premium package that I would actually use on a regular basis. If I cared about DVR or PIP, it would be a pretty easy choice to spend the extra bucks.

[dynomite]

Stuff like that wouldn't annoy me. The main concern is when/if the delay is different, like the pitcher hasn't released the ball yet and I'm already hearing the crack of the bat. That would obviously render the alternate audio feed useless.

Yeah this is my main concern -- has anyone tried this yet? (I understand it's a new feature, but was wondering if they'd done a test last season or something)

[Doctuh]

Watched a ST over Boxee today. Everything worked very well. No "ballpark audio" but the radio feed and television feed were synched no problem. I did notice that the audio controls allowed some small manual shifting of the audio feed, presumably to deal with small local synchronization issues.

[Hendu for Kutch]

For those who have had this before, I've got a couple of questions. I've got a Roku in my living room and a PS3 in my basement. In looking at the descriptions of each system, it looks like many of the features aren't available if you use these devices. Things like Fantasy Tracker, Clickable Line Score, Alternate Audio Options, and probably most importantly, the split screen/PIP options.

For those that have used either the Roku or the PS3, were all of these options really missing?

[djsaffer]

Any word on when/if Mlb.Tv is coming to the Xbox 360?

[ccsubruce]

So, sadly I would NOT be able to cut my Comcast cable cord and watch the Red Sox on the 'net with this app? Crap. The only thing that keeps me a Comcast customer is the Red Sox.

[axx]

So, sadly I would NOT be able to cut my Comcast cable cord and watch the Red Sox on the 'net with this app? Crap. The only thing that keeps me a Comcast customer is the Red Sox.

That's the point of the blackout.

[ccsubruce]

That's the point of the blackout.

Just another example of the man keeping me down. Crap.

[ccsubruce]

Does anyone have any ways of getting around the blackout restrictions? Anonymouse.org? Proxies? Help a brotha out.

[PandaSox]

Does anyone have any ways of getting around the blackout restrictions? Anonymouse.org? Proxies? Help a brotha out.

If you're willing to pay money for a VPN service, you can try iPredator. It will create a secure VPN connection that makes your computer look like it's in Sweden. Try it and find out!

[virginiasox]

With mlb.tv is there full dvr functionality after a game has started (or ended). I have had Extra Innings in the past, and I typically DVR the games and watch them later that night or the next morning. I also try really hard to not know the score. Is that possible on mlb.tv, or will the score come up when I go to the website?

[CallYaz]

With mlb.tv is there full dvr functionality after a game has started (or ended). I have had Extra Innings in the past, and I typically DVR the games and watch them later that night or the next morning. I also try really hard to not know the score. Is that possible on mlb.tv, or will the score come up when I go to the website?

Just updated my AppleTV and noticed one of the settings is to hide the score. Looks like it might do what I want, I get home about 5:30 Pacific time and want to be able to start the game at that time without knowing anything. Would be awesome if this works, I'll grab two or three more AppleTV's ...

[CodPiece XL]

Does anyone have any ways of getting around the blackout restrictions? Anonymouse.org? Proxies? Help a brotha out.

This is a free VPN service that gives you a UK ip address.I use it mainly to watch live UK TV streams that are normally geo-blocked because I'm in the U.S. It comes in handy if you have MLB TV and games are blacked out, especially Fox sports Saturday.

http://expatshield.com/

[ccsubruce]

This is a free VPN service that gives you a UK ip address.I use it mainly to watch live UK TV streams that are normally geo-blocked because I'm in the U.S. It comes in handy if you have MLB TV and games are blacked out, especially Fox sports Saturday.

http://expatshield.com/

Thanks! I appreciate that. I'll give it a go.

[savage362]

So I see that the refund policy states a refund will be given if requested within 5 days of the original purchase/subscription date.

I'm assuming that I'd be able to subscribe, try to get around the blackouts via VPN/Proxies for 5 days, and if unsuccessful get a full refund.

Sound right?

[PedroKsBambino]

A question for those used to the service....

I want to be able to watch Sox on my computer when I'm traveling (which is a fair amount) both in US and Europe.

If I buy mlb.tv with a credit card with a Boston billing address, will I be able to do so? If I get it with a friend's card & non-Boston billing address, will that help? And, does the service work outside the US?

Thanks for advice here!

[SoxScout]

It's based on your internet connections IP address.

[djsaffer]

A question for those used to the service....

I want to be able to watch Sox on my computer when I'm traveling (which is a fair amount) both in US and Europe.

If I buy mlb.tv with a credit card with a Boston billing address, will I be able to do so? If I get it with a friend's card & non-Boston billing address, will that help? And, does the service work outside the US?

Thanks for advice here!

I don't think the billing address matters, it looks at your IP address. I remember being in Charlotte when they were playing the Orioles and I was blacked out.

[Spacemans Bong]

Yeah, it looks at IP address. Billing address doesn't matter.

[PandaSox]

So I see that the refund policy states a refund will be given if requested within 5 days of the original purchase/subscription date.

I'm assuming that I'd be able to subscribe, try to get around the blackouts via VPN/Proxies for 5 days, and if unsuccessful get a full refund.

Sound right?

Yes, I do this every year.

[PedroKsBambino]

Thanks guys.

[trekfan55]

A question for those used to the service....

I want to be able to watch Sox on my computer when I'm traveling (which is a fair amount) both in US and Europe.

If I buy mlb.tv with a credit card with a Boston billing address, will I be able to do so? If I get it with a friend's card & non-Boston billing address, will that help? [b]And, does the service work outside the US?

Thanks for advice here!

As for the bolded part it works perfectly well outside the US, just remember you need a very fast internt connection to really appreciate he video feed. When I'm on the road sometimes I can only follow the radio stream.

[djsaffer]

As for the bolded part it works perfectly well outside the US, just remember you need a very fast internt connection to really appreciate he video feed. When I'm on the road sometimes I can only follow the radio stream.

I run into the same problem hopefully the iPad fixes that. I really want to see it come to the 360. Is there any offer like last year to take $20 off?

[CodPiece XL]

Thanks! I appreciate that. I'll give it a go.

Use firefox and download ad-blocker and you should be all set.

[savage362]

My plan of checking out the proxy access is on hold for now. Noticed today that there are no blackouts for spring training games so I'd have no way of checking to see if I can watch the Sox during the regular season.

I'm assuming it will work as I've currently set my PS3 to access the web via a proxy server and other have reported success with this method.

[Soxy Brown]

Is there any way to hide the picture controls when watching a game on an ipod/iphone? They take up almost half of the screen and I haven't found a way to remove them.

[trekfan55]

I'm logging on my brother's PS3 but the calendar goes only up to 2010. Is there an update we're missing or must we simply wait?

Any help?

[SoxScout]

Is there any way to hide the picture controls when watching a game on an ipod/iphone? They take up almost half of the screen and I haven't found a way to remove them.

touch the screen anywhere other then the controls and they go away