How to stream MLB online in Australia

Never miss another pitch with MLB.TV

America's national pastime doesn't get much love here in Australia. Other than a short spot during the evening news, baseball coverage is pretty much non-existent on free-to-air TV and even Foxtel subscribers only get to watch five MLB games a week out of the dozens being played every day. In short, it's slim pickings for Aussies with a hankering for home runs.

TV networks aren't the only players in the MLB game, though. Thanks to the rise of online streaming technology, sports organisations are now able to deliver live video directly to their fans over the Internet. MLB has wasted no time getting in on the action, establishing MLB.TV as the ultimate source of all things baseball. Finally, Aussie fans have a way to catch every fly ball live and unrestricted. Alas, here are all your options for watching the MLB online in Australia.

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Option 1: Live streaming MLB in HD with Kayo

Kayo offers selected MLB games, similar to Foxtel. The platform enables you to watch both live and tune in to see replays, but again, the selection is limited. You can access Kayo Sports from a variety of devices, including PCs/Macs, smartphones and laptops, Chromecast, and Telstra TV.

The service offers two types of subscriptions - $25/month for two simultaneous streams and $35/month to watch on three screens at the same time. Either way, there’s a 14-day free trial for new customers.

Option 2: Live streaming MLB in HD with ESPN

Foxtel offers a limited selection of baseball games, which are broadcast on ESPN. The channel is available in the Sport Package. Once you’re subscribed to Foxtel, you can use the Foxtel GO app, free with your subscription, to stream content to your laptop or mobile devices. Simply download the app from Google Play or the App Store and enter your Foxtel ID. To watch from your laptop, check out the Foxtel website.

Baseball fans can also access ESPN via Foxtel Now. You will need the Sport Pack, which costs $29/month. This is a Premium Pack, so you’re required to subscribe to the Entry Pack, priced at $25/month, as well to be able to add sports to your subscription. That means that you’ll pay a total of $54/month to watch the MLB on Foxtel Now. On the bright side, you’ll also be able to tune in to Lifestyle and Pop channels.

Foxtel Now works with a variety of devices, including PCs/Macs, PS4, Telstra TV, Chromecast/Airplay, smartphones and tablets, as well as the Foxtel Now Box. A free trial is available for new customers.

ESPN is also available in the Fetch TV Vibe Channel Pack, which costs $6/month. Your total monthly cost, however, will depend on whether you purchase a Fetch box through a broadband provider or buy it outright.

Option 3: Streaming MLB games with MLB.TV

MLB.TV is a subscription-based streaming service covering every aspect of Major League Baseball. From the latest news, scores and statistics to live streams of every regular and World Series game, MLB.TV provides baseball fans with everything they need to keep up-to-date with the current season.

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How do I sign up for MLB.TV and what does it get me?

There are two main tiers of MLB.TV access: a free Lite tier and a paid subscription tier. The Lite tier is available by simply visiting the MLB.TV website or downloading the free MLB At Bat mobile app. Without needing to sign up for anything, you'll have access to all the breaking news and up-to-the-minute scores, along with a selection of video highlights from recently played games. You'll also be able to watch the MLB.TV Game of the Day, a single match that MLB makes free for everyone.

However, to watch the full fixture of games played every day, you'll need to sign up for an MLB.TV subscription. As an MLB.TV subscriber, you'll be able to live stream every single game from the regular season and the World Series, as well as go back and watch any of the matches on-demand. You'll also get access to an archive of games from previous seasons, along with classic matches from the MLB vault. To save you time, these matches are annotated with milestone markers letting you jump straight to their pivotal moments.

MLB.TV streams come loaded with extra features, too. Not only are all matches available in high definition (HD) and 60fps – provided your device and Internet connection can handle it – they also sport real-time highlights and player stats that update as the game progresses, providing comprehensive insight you might otherwise miss. If that's not enough, you can choose between home and away announcers for each game, listening to whichever play-by-play commentary you prefer. Alternatively, you can bypass the video altogether and just listen to the live Gameday audio feed, freeing your eyeballs to focus on other tasks.

It's worth pointing out that, unlike MLB.TV subscribers in America, Aussies don't have to worry about missing any games due to broadcast blackouts. Since Australian free-to-air TV doesn't cover MLB games, Aussie MLB.TV subscribers get access to every game of the season, live and on-demand.

How much does MLB.TV cost?

The Lite tier of MLB.TV is free through both the MLB.TV website and the At Bat mobile app. However, for complete access to all live games and additional MLB.TV features, you'll need to purchase either an MLB.TV Premium Monthly subscription for US$24.99 (approximately AUD$33.44) a month or an MLB.TV Premium Yearly subscription for US$112.99 (approximately AUD$151.22). Both options come with a free Premium subscription for the At Bat mobile app, giving you access to the full range of MLB.TV features on-the-go.

If you sign up for MLB.TV, it's worth remembering that both the monthly and yearly subscriptions default to recurring payments. To avoid getting charged indefinitely, make sure to disable automatic renewal in your MLB.TV account settings.

What devices are compatible with MLB.TV?

Most modern devices support MLB.TV, giving you plenty of ways to watch the ball game.

The MLB.TV website offers the most versatile viewing experience, with support for 60fps HD video and the desktop-only Mosaic View, a split-screen mode that lets you watch multiple games on the same screen at the same time.

To access the MLB.TV website, you'll need a Windows PC running Windows 7 or later, or a Mac computer running OS X 10.8 or later. You'll also need a recent version of one of the following web browsers: Internet Explorer 11, Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or Safari. Finally, you'll have to make sure you've got the latest version of Adobe Flash Player and Java installed.

Getting your baseball fix on-the-go is as simple as downloading the MLB At Bat app to your mobile device. If you're rocking an Apple device, the At Bat app for iOS requires an iPhone 4s or newer, an iPad 2 or newer or an iPod Touch 5th-generation or newer, all running at least iOS 9.0. If you're more of an Android person, the At Bat app for Android supports all phones and tablets running Android 4.2 and higher.

Watching MLB.TV from the comfort of your couch is just as easy, with support for a wide range of common streaming devices. If you own a second-generation or newer Apple TV, downloading the MLB.TV app from the App Store will let you access all the perks of your MLB.TV subscription. Similarly, if you have an Xbox One or Xbox 360 gaming console, both devices have their own MLB.TV apps to download from their respective app stores. You'll also find the MLB.TV app on select models of Panasonic, LG, Samsung, and Sony smart TVs and Blu-ray players.

For Chromecast owners, meanwhile, both the iOS and Android versions of the At Bat mobile app support casting through a local Wi-Fi network.

No matter how many devices you own, you can only access a single MLB.TV account on one desktop and one mobile device simultaneously. Sharing accounts is against MLB.TV's Terms of Service and doing so can lead to account deactivation.

How much data does MLB.TV use?

MLB.TV makes use of adaptive streaming technology, adjusting video quality based on the speed of your Internet connection. Speeds between 1.8Mbps and 3Mbps will get you a standard definition (SD) stream, speeds between 3Mbps and 5Mbps will get you an HD stream, and anything above 5Mbps will get you access to 60fps HD.

Considering a typical MLB game lasts around three hours, this means MLB.TV will chew through roughly 2.4GB per game when streaming in SD, 4GB per game when streaming in HD and 6.8GB when streaming in 60fps HD. If you just want to listen to the Gameday audio feed, that will use up roughly 675MB per game.