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MLB Network starts streaming live broadcasts on mobile devices
If you're a baseball fan, chances are you're already aware of the Major League Baseball's At Bat app for streaming live games with a MLB.tv subscription. Now, the league is bringing it's 24/7 news, analysis and more from the MLB Network to your computer and mobile device, too. As Forbes reports, this is the first time that a league-owned TV network has offered a live authenticated stream of its around-the-clock broadcast on the desktop, iOS and Android. All of the network's studio shows, original programs, game telecasts and more will stream to the At Bat app, but there's a catch: you'll need a cable subscription to access it.
Major League Baseball doesn't want you livestreaming its games (update: it's cool)
You may want to think twice about livestreaming that baseball game for the sake of your friends back home. Major League Baseball tells the Wall Street Journal that it's reminding teams not to allow services like Meerkat and Periscope in their stadiums, since the live video violates broadcast rights. At least some of the organizations are taking that warning seriously -- the San Francisco Giants will be watching their WiFi network for relevant traffic, and may eventually block it.
120 Sports streams its live news and analysis on Apple TV
With the backing of Sports Illustrated, MLB, NHL, the PGA tour and more, 120 Sports started streaming free live sports news and analysis on the web and mobile devices last June. Now, the digital network is making the leap to set-top boxes, starting with Apple TV. The channel delivers 8 hours of live coverage every day, with the "120 Morning Run" from 8-10 AM ET during the week. Football fans can take a long lunch for "120 Football Fix" from 12-2 PM ET, and if you miss a live broadcast, there's a library of videos for on-demand viewing, too.
Use social media to follow your teams with BreakingSports
Now you can get loads of information about your favorite teams and players from a variety of social media sites without spending hours searching those sites individually. BreakingSports is a free universal app that requires iOS 7.0 or later. Once you register on the app you will be able to have hundreds of updates delivered directly to your device without doing any searching. The app works with the four major American sports leagues, the NFL, MLB, the NBA, and the NHL. Users can select first which league they are interested in, then choose which teams you want to follow and finally the app provides a team roster and users can choose individual players and receive updates on them. The app is always seeking out information on the social media sites from games, news conferences, or sports reporters comments. BreakingSports detects the items which match the users criterion and sends notifications right to the user's device. The information covers game previews, roster moves, injuries, news alerts, line-up changes, rumors, and more. Once the game begins, users can choose to receive updated scores and injury updates throughout the game. BreakingSports seems like a no-brainer for fantasy players. Now with this app you can follow each of the players on your team and get updated data on any injuries, whether they will be in or out of the line-up, and other team information that might impact your fantasy line-up. In addition to stories and updates about your favorites the app provides users with a general news feed for each of the four leagues. These will keep users informed about all the activity taking place around the league and with other teams. So with one app users can be up to speed on all they need to know when talking sports with friends over a few cold ones. I used the app for a couple of days and found a couple of shortcomings. First you can't follow college football or basketball or any of the major soccer leagues such as MLS or the Premier League. I can understand college because of the huge number of teams and players but with soccer a growing interest in the US, it might be a good idea to add that sport in the future. The other area users need to be aware of is the volume of notifications you will receive. I selected two teams and three players and my phone seemed like it was going off all the time. I can only imagine how many alerts i would have received if I had entered a ten or twelve man fantasy football roster. It could be more than users want, but with all those alerts users should be assured BreakingSports is doing what it set out to do and that is bring loads of useful information directly to users devices.
HBO eyes April premiere for its standalone streaming service
Reports have been pretty consistent that HBO will offer a direct-to-consumer streaming option sometime next year. When that might land and what that might look like, however, have been subject to rampant (and usually unfounded) speculation. Today, at least a little more detail is trickling in. The company is currently planning to launch the service, in some capacity, in April alongside the premiere of season five of Game of Thrones. Though, that timeline is subject to the usual caveats about plans changing and all that jazz. Those plans were revealed in a memo (which you'll find after the break) announcing plans to cancel its own streaming platform project "Maui" and license MLB Advanced's much-lauded tech instead.
Smart sleeve helps pro baseball players avoid injury
While the average Joe might use a wearable to see how many calories he burned on the way to Starbucks, such devices can be infinitely more useful for pro athletes. The Motus Sleeve (shown below) can even help Major League Baseball (MLB) players, especially pitchers, to perform better and avoid injuries or possible career-ending Tommy John's surgery. It has a removable 3D sensor sensor with six accelerometers and gyros that's placed in a pouch on the player's elbow. The Sleeve then collects data like arm speed, pitch counts, elbow torque and other pertinent data for hurlers, and swing data for batters.
Fox Sports Go comes to Windows Phone
If there's one downside to being a sports fan, it's that you can't take your HDTV with you wherever you go. Like, for instance, you get a lot of weird looks if you try and watch a 40-inch plasma while trying to buy groceries down at the local market. Thankfully, some relief has appeared in the form of Fox Sports Go, which has now arrived on the Windows Phone Store. The app itself is free, since you'll have to sign in to your specific cable provider, such as AT&T, Time Warner or Comcast, to get access to the good stuff. Now, you can stand in the DMV queue rocking out to (select) MLB, NBA and Champions League games - although given the smaller screen size, it might be wise to move the phone closer to your face. [Image Credit: Eric Broder Van Dyke / Shutterstock]
Follow MLB, NFL, and NBA rumors with Trade Rumors app
For a large number of fans, what happens to their favorite teams off the fields and courts is just as important as the action that takes place in the games. Now with a single app users can follow all the latest rumors about trades, cuts, waivers, hirings, firings and just about everything else dealing with roster changes in the Trade Rumors app. The origin of this app began with a web site put together as a hobby by a fan who loved the baseball "hot stove" season. He poured over Internet sites looking for information on all the player movements during the off season. His hobby grew into a full time job and now his site MLBTradeRumors.com is one of the most wide read sites of its kind on the web. It is used by fans, reporters, and team officials to keep up with player movement. The site compiles reports from other web sources including well known insiders such as Ken Rosenthal of Fox, Buster Olney and Jason Starke of ESPN and Hall of Fame reporter Peter Gammons. The baseball site was successful and grew into similar sites for football and basketball. Now you can access all of this information in this single free universal app. The other sites are ProFootballRumors.com and HoopsRumors.com. Users can choose to receive news feeds from all three sports or just the one or two that holds the most interest. Additionally users can select news feeds dealing with their favorite teams and just about every player active in MLB, the NFL, and the NBA. The app contains all of the stories posted on the three web sites and is separated by sports and teams or players. Just tap on the story you want to read or slide the graphics left and right to find the one that interests you. Then a single tap opens the story for your perusal. Once you read that story you can slide the stories left and right again to read more without going back to the main page. Trade Rumors also offers users the ability to share stories with friends through all the major social networking sites plus email, texts and more. You won't get game stories and scores in this app but you do receive a compilation of information from some of the most outstanding reporters working on the web. So if trades, waivers, roster changes, etc. are of interest to you, this app should be one you download. I have used the original sites for years and was thrilled when I found I can now get all that same great information the Trade Rumors app. It is now on my iPhone and iPad.
MLB announces that Apple Pay will work at both World Series stadiums
Major League Baseball in recent years has been particularly receptive to new technologies, as evidenced by its forward thinking MLB.com At Bat app and its early support of digital ticketing via Apple's Passbook app. So with the World Series starting today, it's no surprise that the two ballparks involved -- Kauffman Stadium in KC and AT&T Park in San Francisco -- will be the first two major league stadiums to offer support for Apple Pay. Forbes reports: Just in time for the World Series on Tuesday, MLB Advanced Media, the digital media company of Major League Baseball announced on Monday that MasterCard is bringing contactless acceptance to ballpark food and beverage concessions, enabling fans to make payments using a variety of NFC-enabled devices and services, including the newly introduced Apple Pay. The report adds that MLB is also planning to roll out in-app support for Apple Pay next season, thereby allowing fans to purchase tickets directly from their iOS device. Notably, MLB Advanced CEO Bob Bowman said back in September that Apple Pay is poised to be much bigger than analysts realize and that fans will soon need to bring nothing to the ballpark except their smartphone.
MLB hopes to ease blackouts on streaming local games
With MLB.tv, Major League Baseball's subscription-based streaming option, your local team's home games are blacked out due to TV and/or cable deals. That could change as early as next season though, as Bob Bowman, the league's head of Advanced Media, expects a revised online viewing agreement soon with broadcasters and teams. Networks pay millions for the rights to beam the action into living rooms, so we'd surmise there's quite a sum of money to discuss. When the restrictions are lifted, you'll likely need a cable plan to access those games -- just like FOX required for the All-Star Game this summer and ESPN does for its streaming option. [Photo credit: Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images]
Amazon Fire TV scores live video apps for Disney, MLB and WWE
The launch of Flappy Bird Family last week probably wasn't going to make you rush to buy a Fire TV any time soon, but don't worry -- Amazon has a few more aces up its sleeve. The Android-powered media hub is now getting a slew of extra apps, many of which expand the video selection to areas that Amazon simply can't cover. You can now tune into MLB.tv and WWE Network if you need a live sports fix (real or otherwise), and you can entertain your kids with Animal Planet and Watch Disney. If you're the patient type, you'll also be glad to hear that NFL Now, Watch ABC, A&E and Dailymotion are due later this year. These additions likely won't make you chuck your Apple TV or Roku box, but they might get you thinking about a Fire TV if you'd previously ruled it out.
Livestream the MLB All-Star Game next week thanks to FOX Sports Go
It doesn't matter if you're planning on getting cozy on the couch or watching next week's Major League Baseball All-Star Game while in transit. Thanks to FOX Sports Go, the network that shares the same moniker will stream the game that features the best (or most popular) players from both the American and National Leagues. The app will offer both English and Spanish versions of the event, with the first pitch set for 7:30 PM ET on Tuesday, July 15th. If you're looking for pregame coverage, FOX Sports 1's broadcast will be beamed to your gadgets starting at 4:30 PM ET. Folks looking to tune in on the go can nab the FOX Sports Go app on Android, iOS, Kindle and Windows or access the action via the web. [Photo credit: Boston Globe via Getty Images]
120 Sports launches its free internet sports news network today
Whether you're a cord-cutter looking for a way to keep up with sports news or just need an alternative to the cable sports networks, it's time to give 120 Sports a try. Launching today on the web and iOS (Android coming July 14th), it's promising eight hours of live sports coverage every day (from 6PM to 2AM ET today), broken into two-minute clips (also available as video on-demand), hence the name. The lights turned on at 6PM ET today with some live coverage of Tim Lincecum's attempt at a no-hitter, and you'll notice familiar faces like former SportsCenter host Michael Kim and former NBA player Antoine Walker in the mix. The best part? Trying it won't cost you anything except other than some time.
'R.B.I. Baseball 14' hits Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on June 24th
We knew MLB would eventually bring R.B.I Baseball 14 to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, but now there's an official date. Today, the league announced that the classic title is coming to Microsoft and Sony's new consoles early next week, on June 24th. Now don't expect R.B.I Baseball 14 to match the looks of, say, MLB 14: The Show -- the fully remastered game is more about being easy for anybody to quickly pick up, while still maintaining a fun edge to it overall. Just as it is priced on Xbox 360 and PS3, R.B.I. Baseball 14 will also be $20 on Xbox One and PS4 when it arrives in a few days time.
RBI Baseball 14 slides to Xbox One and PS4 next week, updates this summer
We're over two months into the MLB's 2014 season and MLB Advanced Media is now re-re-introducing the RBI Baseball series next week on Xbox One and PS4. RBI Baseball 14 launched digitally on April 9 for Xbox 360, PS3, iOS and Android, and now it'll arrive on the next-gen platforms on Tuesday, June 24. MLBAM also announced plans to update the game "later this summer." The update will bring a new competitive multiplayer mode and a "special alumni pack" for all console versions of the game. The pack will add "60 former Major League stars from the earliest days of the RBI Baseball brand" to RBI 14. First announced in early January, RBI 14 is an arcade-style baseball game with unlockable retro jerseys and a simple two-button control scheme. Along with iOS and Android, the next-gen versions of the game will receive updated rosters to reflect roster changes this year, such as Emilio Bonifacio (Chicaco Cubs), Brandon Hicks (San Francisco Giants), Masahiro Tanaka (New York Yankees) and Jose Abreu (Chicago White Sox). It will cost $19.99 on Xbox One and PS4. [Image: MLBAM]
Cleveland Indians want to put ads where fans can see them
Advertisers and sponsors are extremely valuable to all professional sports teams, and thus it is very important to keep them engaged with the fans. In an effort to make this happen, the Cleveland Indians recently partnered with Tobii, a maker of eye-tracking glasses, to conduct a study that could determine what exactly folks look at throughout their time at Progressive Field. The MLB team says it gave 47 fans a pair of Tobii Glasses to use during the span of three days, which were worn as they watched games from various seating areas at its ballpark. Essentially, using the Tobii Insight research program as the basis, the goal was to see how much time participants spent looking at the main scoreboard and other dynamic signage. In theory, this would detect just how valuable certain locations are inside the stadium -- so, the easier it is for you spot it, the more it could potentially cost for a company to put an ad there.
MLB 14: The Show misses first pitch on PSN for PS4 [Update: Resolved]
MLB 14: The Show was expected to be available on PSN as a day-one digital download for PS4 this morning at 12:01 a.m. Eastern. Those that pre-ordered the game have not been able to download it at all however, as indicated by a 70-page PlayStation Forums support thread. Sony San Diego acknowledged the issue via Twitter, noting it is "aware that some users are unable to download the PS4 game from the PS Store. We're working with the PS Store team to resolve asap." This is the series' first crack at the next-gen console following MLB 14's launch on PS3 and Vita at the beginning of April. "Thanks for your patience, we won't rest until you guys are playing," the developer added in another tweet. We've reached out to Sony for more information on the issue and a timetable for its resolution, and will update as we learn more. [Thanks to everyone that sent this in!] Update: Sony added a note to its launch announcement post on the PlayStation Blog, which reads: "Due to unforeseen technical issues, MLB 14 The Show for PS4 is not currently available for download via the PlayStation Store. All parties are working as quickly as possible to remedy the issue. We'll update this post as soon as a resolution is reached. Thank you for your continued patience." Update #2: In another update, Sony says the "PlayStation Store download issue regarding MLB 14 The Show on PS4 has been resolved. We apologize for any frustration this caused, and thank the community for its patience and understanding." [Image: Sony]
Batter up: Chromecast now live streams every pitch with MLB.tv
Google's little $35 dongle is like a fine wine: it just keeps getting better with age. Today, the Chromecast is adding support for MLB.tv, letting you push out live out-of-market games right to your TV from a smartphone or tablet. The only caveat is that you'll need an MLB.tv Premium subscription to do so, but chances are most of you hardcore fans of America's pastime already have one of those. If you do, the only thing left to do is grab the MLB At Bat app from Google Play or the App Store -- an update that brings Chromecast support to these apps should be rolling out as we speak. And while you're at it, perhaps you may want to download R.B.I. Baseball 14, so you can have an all-baseball day to yourself.
MLB 14 The Show: The Joystiq Review
The term "simulation" is appropriate for MLB 14: The Show, but not just because of its beautiful presentation, a defining trait of the series that's become a benchmark for other sports video games. Rather, MLB 14: The Show earns its simulation stripes by continuing the series' tradition of challenging players with mechanics and statistics that mirror the real sport. While MLB's gameplay has changed little this year, no matter what option players select for pitching, fielding and hitting (we'll get to that later), they will fail or succeed as regularly as athletes do in the big leagues. Yet much like the faithfully-recreated and wildly differing batting stances of hitters in the game, MLB 14: The Show truly makes its mark in the baseball sim series by being one thing: dynamic. Click here for more
With R.B.I. Baseball 14, MLB takes a shot at making its own games
Major League Baseball is bringing back a classic. But while resuscitating an old title could sometimes create a double-edged-sword effect of sorts, that's not stopping MLB from taking the chance to reboot the R.B.I. Baseball series. Most importantly, R.B.I. Baseball 14 was developed in-house by MLB's Advanced Media branch, also known as MLBAM, a team that's behind applications like At Bat and whose tech powers the WWE Network streaming service. Up until now, sport games have been all about licensing, so this shift also lets us know how Major League Baseball views that industry. Sure, the experience in R.B.I. Baseball 14 might not be as full-fledged as with, say, Sony's MLB 14 The Show, but it's still interesting to see a professional league leveraging its work as a technology company too.
