National television broadcasts ofMajor League Baseball (MLB) games have aired onABC in various formats.^[8] The network first aired SaturdayMajor League Baseball Game of the Week games between 1953 and 1955, in 1960 and in 1965. ABC then televised MLB games from 1976 to 1989, airingMonday Night Baseball,Thursday Night Baseball andSunday Afternoon Baseball in various years during that period andSunday Night Baseball in 2021.

MLB games aired on ABC again in 1994 and 1995 as part ofThe Baseball Network, the short-livedtime-brokered package of broadcasts produced by Major League Baseball and split withNBC. After not televising MLB since The Baseball Network folded, and after theABC Sports division merged withESPN in 2006, ABC has aired selected games as part of its sister cable network's contract since 2020. The broadcasts since 2020 have been produced by ESPN and have primarily used theESPN Major League Baseball branding and graphics.

From1953 until1955, and again in1960, ABC airedMajor League Baseball Game of the Week telecasts, usually on Saturdays.^[9] In1959, ABC broadcast thebest-of-three playoff series^[10][11][12] (to decide theNational League pennant) between theMilwaukee Braves andLos Angeles Dodgers.

In1965, ABC returned toGame of the Week broadcasting with 28 regional Saturday and Holiday games.^[13]

In1976, ABC began a new four year rights deal with MLB that included 16 newMonday night games, which increased to 18 in the next three years of the deal, as well as half the postseason (bothLeague Championship Series in even numbered years andWorld Series in odd numbered years) and theAll-Star Game in even numbered years.^[14] This contract was modified for the1980,Monday Night Baseball telecasts were reduced to just five, with the rest of the games moved toSunday afternoons.^[15]

In1984, ABC agreed to a new six year rights deal with MLB. The playoff and All-Star Game television structure remained the same, while ABC increased their regular season games to 20.^[16]

In1989, the final season of ABC's deal beforeCBS took over, ABC moved their games toThursday nights.^[17]

In1994, ABC returned to MLB coverage with another six year rights deal. Under the deal, as part ofThe Baseball Network, ABC would air six weeks of regular season games on Saturday and Monday nights. In even numbered years, ABC had the rights to the World Series andDivision Series, while in odd numbered years ABC had the rights to the All-Star Game and League Championship Series.^[18] However, these plans changed because of the1994–95 Major League Baseball strike. Because of the strike, which began on August 12, a significant number of games were cancelled, including the1994 World Series. ABC andNBC consequently, wound up sharing the rights to the1995 World Series. Also because of the strike, The Baseball Network, a joint production between NBC and ABC, collapsed, and ABC ended their MLB rights following the1995 season.^[19]

In2020, ABC returned to MLB coverage once again. This time it was part ofESPN'sWild Card Series coverage, which was expanded due to theCOVID-19 pandemic (ESPN and ABC are both primarily owned byThe Walt Disney Company, and Disney integrated theABC Sports division with ESPN in 2006). ABC aired three Wild Card Series games as part of this coverage. All coverage primarily used ESPN orESPN on ABC branding.^[20] In2021, ABC aired their first regular season game since 1995, an August 8Sunday Night Baseball game between theChicago White Sox andChicago Cubs.^[21] That same year, ESPN and Major League Baseball agreed to a contract extension that included the exclusive rights to a new Wild Card Series. ABC will have the rights to air select games from the Series, as well as the rights to air select ESPN regular season games.^[22][23] From 2022 to 2025, ABC has aired one to three games (usually all games from one of the series) annually from the Wild Card Series.^[24] On February 20, 2025, MLB and ESPN agreed to opt-out of their deal at the end of the 2025 season.^[25]

On November 19, 2025, ESPN announced a restructured three-year deal with MLB. Under this new deal, ESPN would televise a 30-game schedule primarily on summer weeknights, including theMLB Little League Classic,Memorial Day games, and the second-half opener game. They also obtained exclusive rights toMLB.tv, includinglocal media rights to theArizona Diamondbacks,Cleveland Guardians,Colorado Rockies,Minnesota Twins,San Diego Padres andSeattle Mariners.^[26] However, its flagship broadcastSunday Night Baseball as well as the Wild Card Series were moved toNBC, whileNetflix took over rights to theHome Run Derby.^[27]

^α ABC cut away^[35] from their broadcast Miami-Chicago Cubs game during the top of the 9th inning to deliver aspecial report onU.S. presidentDonald Trump being taken toWalter Reed National Military Medical Center forCOVID-19 treatment. The conclusion of the game would be seen onESPN.

^βAl Michaels,^[36] who was the lead play-by-play announcer for ABC's Major League Baseball coverage in the 1980s and their brief return to the sport from 1994 to 1995, would join in on the broadcast viaFaceTime during the fourth inning. Vasgersian, Rodriguez, and Olney wore special ABC Sports patches during theSunday Night Baseball telecast on August 8, 2021. Special graphics were also used in conjunction with the standardESPN MLB graphics.

In1965, ABC brought forth such innovations^[37] like isolatedinstant replay, field microphones, and a separate camera for each base runner. After ABC's contract for theGame of the Week expired after a single season,NBC felt compelled to dramatically alter their own baseball coverage. So for NBC's coverage of the1965 World Series, it featured videotaped replays, prerecorded audio analysis from key players, and enhanced animated graphics.

When ABC resumed broadcasting Major League Baseball games in1976 after an eleven-year hiatus, they were immediately accused of having ill-prepared production crews and announcers on theirMonday Night Baseball^[38] telecasts. William Leggett ofSports Illustrated would in particular, note^[39] that ABC seemed to try to hoodwink viewers with commentary that may sound insightful, but was often dead wrong, and with fancy camera work that was frequently used at inappropriate times during the action. Leggett also criticized ABC for far too often losing batted balls and base runners from view and employingsplit screens with the wrong men on base. Not only that, but the starting lineups were not being given at the beginning of the games.

According to James Walker, professor in the department of communication atSaint Xavier University and co-author of the bookCenter Field Shot: A History of Baseball on Television, ABC brought the techniques it had perfected in itsfootball coverage, including far more extensive use of replays, isolated cameras, and different angles. In contrast, when looking at NBC's production of the1969 World Series, very few replays were utilized and it was a much more static broadcast than what you saw later.^[40]

For their coverage of the1979 World Series^[41] inBaltimore,^[42] ABC brought two trucks (and rented a third), 14 cameras, a helicopter and nearly 100 technicians. According to producerChuck Howard, that was just about twice the number of cameras used during the regular season, and at twice the cost. DirectorChet Forte's team of cameramen was, in his words, "built around the camera position high behind home plate (C-2)." Their "coverage camera" was designed to follow the flight of the ball. ABC intended on using this camera 75 percent of the time and was according to Forte, the toughest camera in TV sports.

ABC, under the watch of director Joe Aceti, brought some innovations^[43] in time for their coverage of the1980 National League Championship Series between theHouston Astros andPhiladelphia Phillies, such as putting the camera in thegondola in theAstrodome looking straight down on the field. For tight shots, Aceti wanted to see the face of the pitcher and the face of the batter. He didn't want them shown in a split screen but separately in a close-up. He also didn't want to shot players head to toe in a long shot, not even in a medium shot.

Chet Forte's directing performance would come under scrutiny when ABC next broadcast the World Series in1981.^[44] For one thing, ABC's replay cameras, which were placed strategically around the park, don't always catch the play. For example, ABC only showed one replay from the main feed camera ofNew York Yankees third basemanGraig Nettles making a diving, eighth-inning catch ofLos Angeles Dodgers first basemanSteve Garvey's liner in Game 1. ABC was also criticized for frequently showing all those players' wives cheering instead of giving viewers a wide- angle view of how the outfielders are playing the hitters.

David Remnick of theWashington Post felt^[45] thatHoward Cosell^[46][47] while broadcasting the1983 World Series alongsideAl Michaels andEarl Weaver,^[48][49] developed a few "human interest" tags and rammed them home in his inimitable ecclesiastical rhythms instead of actually sharing his knowledge with viewers. To put things into perspective, Remnick noted that Cosell had more to say about the way theBaltimore groundskeepers combated the outfield's "slippage factor" with a miraculous "drying agent" than aboutMike Boddicker's pitching. Remnick also said that Cosell had more to say about the refurbished buildings in downtown Baltimore and along theSchuylkill River than aboutMike Schmidt's hitting. Or Cosell would talk aboutJohn Denny's family problems more often than his ability to strike outEddie Murray. Remnick in particular, criticized ABC for featuring interviews interspersed with the game action, which would sometimes cause them to miss a double off the wall while a prerecorded player is gabbing up in the corner of the screen. Not only that, but Remnick accused Howard Cosell of did his best to ruin a great camera shot ofJohn Lowenstein's theft of a home run in Game 1 by simultaneously praising the shot and rapping other networks for praising their own shots.

Game 6 of the1985 World Series^[50] would become rooted in controversy when the bottom of the ninth,Jorge Orta, the leadoff batter for theKansas City Royals, hit a slow roller toSt. Louis Cardinals first basemanJack Clark, who tossed the ball to the pitcher,Todd Worrell, who was covering first base. UmpireDon Denkinger called Orta safe, even though television replays and photographs clearly showed that he was out by half a step.^[51] The Royals went on to win Game 6 by the score of 2–1.^[52] The first replay that ABC showed^[53] was a faraway shot from high along the third base side that froze upon Worrell's catch, with Orta's foot still seemingly in the air.

NBC Sports executive producerMichael Weisman said^[54] that while he thought that ABC's coverage of the 1986 League Championship Series was overall fine, he didn't think that they held on with the stories long enough. For instance, Weisman thought that ABC should have kept a camera onCalifornia Angels third-base coachMoose Stubing longer in Game 2 of theAmerican League Championship Series. Weisman thought that the camera should've followed Stubing into the dugout to see how his teammates reacted to him after he failed to giveBobby Grich a sign. Weisman also felt that ABC should have stayed withNew York Mets first basemanKeith Hernandez longer after he was called out on strikes in Game 1 of theNational League Championship Series against theHouston Astros and argued vehemently with umpireDoug Harvey.

Meanwhile, Harry Coyle, NBC's coordinating producer and director of baseball also said that while he thought that ABC's 1986 LCS coverage was for the most part fine, he also said "A shot of a wife can be a great shot, if you use it once or twice a game, like in the ninth inning of a close game and the pitcher is in trouble. But to show a batter, then his wife, then the batter, then his wife, then the batter, then his wife . . . well, that's ridiculous." When asked about ABC's use of a roof camera at the Astrodome, Coyle said "If that shot is so great, why don't they sell seats up there."

In June 1987, ABC director Craig Janoff said that^[55] they didn't do quite the same thing as NBC since they would go two months without doing a gamethat season, and then they would do theWorld Series^[56] in October. Janoff added that baseball was the most challenging sport that he has directed for television because timing is critical. In other words, you have to think about where a fan's eyes move, and constant cutting from camera to camera is necessary.

Come the World Series in 1987,Norman Chad of theWashington Post said^[57] that ABC's cameras miss nothing and offered unmatched replays.^[58] Meanwhile, ABC's graphics in Chad's eyes, provided better reading than some best sellers, while the announcers knew the game and talked intelligently about it. Furthermore, Chad said that ABC's cameras always showed runs as they were scored. In contrast, NBC sometimes failed to show players crossing the plate during their coverage of the League Championship Series. And whereas ABC's announcers almost always pulled back when theMetrodome crowd went into a frenzy inMinnesota, NBC's announcers according to Chad, sometimes added to the noise (except to go silent at game's end). Chad even believed that ABC captured the quirky nature of the Metrodome better than NBC, from intriguing camera shots toAl Michaels' play-by-play.

When assessing ABC's coverage of the1988 NLCS between theLos Angeles Dodgers andNew York Mets, theChicago Tribune's Steve Nidetz praised their camera work.^[59] Nidetz in particular, gave credit to producer Curt Gowdy Jr., who was responsible for calling all the shots for ABC's NLCS coverage. Instead of subjecting viewers to long-range angles of baseballs floating into the air, ABC had closeups everywhere, from the dugout to the field to the stands. In contrast, ABC's production of the1988 ALCS between theOakland Athletics andBoston Red Sox under director Steve Danz, cameramen kept missing plays and according to Jim Sarni of theSouth Florida Sun-Sentinel,^[60] seemed to be preoccupied showing theHarvard rowing crew on theCharles.

Again as previously mentioned, Game 3 of1989 World Series was scheduled to begin at San Francisco'sCandlestick Park on October 17 at 5:35PDT, ABC began itspre-game show at 5:00 PDT. When theLoma Prieta earthquake struck at approximately 5:04 PDT, Tim McCarver was narrating taped highlights of Game 2, which had been played two days prior across theBay Bridge inOakland. Television viewers saw the video signal begin to break up, heard McCarver repeat a sentence as the shaking distracted him, and heard Al Michaels exclaim, "I'll tell you what, we're having an earth – ." At that moment, the signal from Candlestick Park was lost.^[61] The network put up a green ABC Sports "World Series" technical difficultiestelop graphic^[62] while it scrambled to repair the video feed (the broadcast cameras and mics were powered by the local power supply), but audio from the stadium was restored after a few seconds via a telephone link:

Al Michaels: Well, heh, I don't know if we're on the air... We are in commercial, I guess.

Jim Palmer: Yes, yes, we hear you.

Tim McCarver: I guess...

Michaels: I don't hear a thing.

McCarver: I guessDave Parker...

Michaels: Well, heh, I don't know if we're on the air or not, and I'm not sure I care at this particular moment but we are. Well, folks, that's the greatest open in the history of television! Bar none!

McCarver: Started with a bang!

Michaels: Yes, it certainly did! Heh! We're still here! Heh! We are still, as we can tell, on the air, and I guess you are hearing us, even though we have no picture and no return audio, and we will be back, we hope, from San Francisco, in just a moment.^[63]

The combined screams of excitement and panic from fans who had no idea of the devastation elsewhere could be heard in the background.^[64] ABC then switched to episodes ofRoseanne andThe Wonder Years, which was on standby for arain delay situation, while attempting to restore electricity to its remote equipment. With anchormanTed Koppel in position inWashington, D.C.,ABC News began continuous coverage of the quake at 5:32 p.m. PDT, with Al Michaels, in the process, becoming a de facto on-site reporter for ABC. TheGoodyear Blimp had already been overhead to cover the baseball game, and ABC used it to capture images of damage to the Bay Bridge and other locations.

Jerry Trecker of theHartford Courant praise ABC's production of the1995 All-Star Game^[65] inArlington. He said that the broadcast crew of Al Michaels,Tim McCarver, andJim Palmer paced their broadcast as if they had never been away, and the different looks, especially ground level cameras, had always been a trademark of effective work by ABC. ABC also according to him, made effective use of graphics to recap season leaders.ABC Sports' technical coverage as a whole, included^[66] 21 cameras from allvantage points, including one in theGoodyear Blimp, and an unmanned camera directly above home plate. Coaches would wearwireless microphones.

Trecker did, however, point out that times, the broadcasters seemed to be ahead of the production people, especially when they wanted to talk aboutRaul Mondesi's speed getting to a drive into the right field corner. They never showed it. Trecker also believed that ABC's usage of dugout reporters (in this case,Lesley Visser,John Saunders, andRick Dempsey), even in showcase games like the All-Star Game, was overkill. Visser in particular, was singled out for asked such lengthy questions ofLos Angeles Dodgers pitcherHideo Nomo that it was almost farcical when his answers came back in translation.

For the1995 World Series,^[67]ABC and NBC shared 17 cameras and 13 tape machines, two of the"Super Slo-Mo" variety.

Historically, KTRK was the original television home of theHouston Astros, from the team's inaugural season in1962 until1971; however, the station only aired the team's Sunday afternoon road games. It also broadcast any Astros games that were part of ABC's broadcast contract withMajor League Baseball from 1976 to 1989.

On December 12, 2014, WLS-TV signed a new five-year broadcast agreement with theChicago Cubs, in which WLS would televise 25 of theMajor League Baseball team's games per year, starting with the2015 season. The arrangement partially replaced one withWGN-TV (which had broadcast Cubs games since its inception in April 1948), which voluntarily pulled out of its existing broadcast deal with the team for the2015 season and subsequently agreed to carry a reduced slate of 45 games. The WLS broadcasts were seen onDirecTV's version ofMLB Extra Innings, and the feed provided is the WLS signal seen in theChicago market (unlike with the feeds of WGN broadcasts, wherepublic service announcements were seen in place of local commercials and station promos). As ABC had alimited sports programming schedule during the Major League Baseball season prior to September (when the MLB regular season andcollege football season overlap), the station mainly carried the team's weekend daytime games in order to limit pre-emptions of the network's prime time programming.^{[68][69][70][71]}

Inline citations

Bibliography

• Fidrych, Mark; Tom Clark (1977).No Big Deal. Lippincott.ISBN 978-0-397-01233-6.
• Walker, James R.; Bellamy, Robert V. (2008).Center field shot: a history of baseball on television. Omaha, Ne.: University of Nebraska Press.ISBN 978-0803248250.

• American Broadcasting Company original programming
• ABC Sports
• Black-and-white American television shows
• Major League Baseball on television
• Wide World of Sports (American TV program)
• 1953 American television series debuts
• 1954 American television series endings
• 1960 American television series debuts
• 1960 American television series endings
• 1965 American television series debuts
• 1965 American television series endings
• 1976 American television series debuts
• 1989 American television series endings
• 1994 American television series debuts
• 1995 American television series endings
• 2020 American television series debuts

• All articles with dead external links
• Articles with dead external links from August 2025
• Articles with permanently dead external links
• Use mdy dates from October 2020
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata