The evolution in being televised

I received an email from MLB TV earlier this month informing me that my annual Mariners single-team subscription is set to automatically renew for $129.99.

For this sum, I will be able to watch most every Mariners game through the MLB app. The only exceptions are nationally televised games and those games in which the Mariners are playing either the Yankees or the Mets.

I am guessing this would be a popular service among Mariners fans if they had the option of purchasing it.

Except if you live in Seattle, you’re not allowed to get the MLB TV package that I have access to. It’s blacked out for anyone in the Mariners’ “market” which spans to parts of five different states: Washington, Oregon, Idaho and parts of Montana and Alaska.

To summarize: I — as someone living on the Upper West Side of Manhattan — have access to a more direct, streamline purchase of Mariners games than someone living in Seattle is patently absurd. (I would argue it’s cheaper, too, but that would require a totally uninteresting debate about what else you get in your cable or satellite subscription.)

This is not a situation that is unique to the Mariners or their fans. It has been standard-operating procedure within Major League Baseball though that is (quickly) changing.

Currently, 22 of the 30 MLB teams offer their local fans a subscription allowing them to stream their games. The TV Answer Man outlined the full range of options along with prices, which range from $99.99 for teams like the Guardians and Twins to $199.99 for the Blue Jays on up to $239.99 for the Boston Red Sox.

The Mariners are one of eight Major League teams whose in-market fans don’t have a direct-to-consumer streaming option which is TV speak for “we won’t let our in-market fans stream our games a la carte.” The other seven teams who lack direct-to-consumer streaming options:the Dodgers, Phillies, Athletics, Astros, Orioles, Giants and the Nationals.

So what’s keeping the Mariners from offering their games directly to consumers?

Well, first of all, the Mariners own the station that televises the vast majority of their games. That would be Root Sports Northwest. In fact, the Mariners are the only team in baseball that owns 100 percent of its regional sports network.

Root Sports, in turn, has contracts with cable companies and satellite companies. These contracts stipulate that the Mariners can’t offer a separate streaming service for their games to fans that live within their market. In other words, the cable companies paid for exclusivity, and if a fan in that region wants to watch Mariners games, well, that fan will need a cable subscription to do it.

If you’re a Comcast subscriber, you know that this subscription got more expensive back in 2023.

Could it change? Sure. Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times recently wrote about it, and while Divish reported Mariners leadership has been trying to find ways to offer a direct-to-consumer streaming option, there was no sign that one was imminent.

As I see it, this could wind up costing the Mariners in two different ways:

1. If the revenues from broadcast rights become less lucrative, this could affect how much money the Mariners put into their baseball operations in general and team payroll in particular.

2. Making it more expensive to watch games is going to decrease the number of fans who do, which will presumably cut into the enthusiasm they feel for the product.

So what I want to know — for those Mariners fans living in the Pacific Northwest — is if you have access to watch Root Sports, and feel free to add any details in the comment box that will appear after you vote in the poll.

• Geno Smith is going to be the Seahawks’ quarterback next season, and while I’m not the one making that decision, I completely believe it’s the right one as I explained in my column in The News Tribune.

• Surprise! The point-shaving efforts coordinated by men-of-ill-repute wasn’t confined to NBA bench-warmer Johntay Porter begging out of games to facilitate wagers that had been placed on his performance. Sports Illustrated has connected some of the folks involved in Porter’s case with bets placed on at least nine college games.

  What is remarkable is how dumb the guys behind the plot were. One of them — Shane Hennen — called himself “Sugar Shane” and had a Web site. He posted pictures of betting slips online. Another guy he calls a “partner” — but who has not been charged in the scheme — had a podcast.

  Here’s where you’d usually get some hand-wringing about all of the evils that legalized sports gambling has wrought. Instead, I’m going to offer a thought: If these morons could make millions in fraudulent bets — as authorities claim — can you imagine what disciplined and discreet criminals might be capable of?

🏈 Russell Mania? 🏈 

Russell Wilson’s 2024 season in Pittsburgh followed the same beats to the plotline of his NFL career:

• At first, he was a revelation.

• Then came a few hiccups.

• Finally, there was an utterly disorienting tailspin.

I honestly do not know what is going to happen next, and I don’t think I’m alone in that regard as the final month of the regular season and one-and-done playoff appearance threw Wilson’s future into doubt.

On Dec. 8, the Steelers defeated the Browns 27-14, improving to 10-3. Wilson was 6-1 as the team’s starter at that point, having missed the first six games because of injury. Pittsburgh had scored more than 25 points in five of those seven games.

Pittsburgh lost their final four regular-season games, failing to score more than 17 points in any of those games. Then, the Steelers were beaten 28-14 in the first weekend of the playoffs.

Now, the one-year, minimum-salary deal he signed with Pittsburgh is done. He’s no longer on the Broncos payroll. He will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career.

He still throws an incredible deep ball, but I’m not sure if he’s above average in any other skills quarterbacks are measured on.

He would be a great backup quarterback, but I can’t imagine he’s ready to take on a role where he’s not at least given a chance to start.

He could be a really effective bridge for a team seeking some veteran stability while they prepare a young quarterback, but I’m not sure if NFL teams see him as a mentor type or someone who’s interested or particularly well-suited for that.

Here are the teams I see as possibilities in descending order of likelihood: Steelers, Colts, Jets, Raiders, Giants, Saints.