The 2024 Season is nearing, with the Oakland A’s beginning spring training in February. This article will explain how you can stream the next A’s game and every Oakland A’s game this season, no matter where you live.
What Streaming Services Do You Need
In 2024 A’s games will air in the A’s TV market on NBC Sports California. They will also have the occasional nationally broadcast exclusive games on Fox, ESPN, and TBS. However, if you live outside of the A’s market, then you would need MLB.TV to watch A’s games. Either way, fans will want to look at DIRECTV STREAM, Hulu + Live TV, Sling, or YouTube TV for watching A’s games in 2024. Let’s look at each one.
Sling
Sling carries, carries NBC Sports California (if you live in the A’s Market), ESPN, TBS, MLB Network, and FS1 for watching nationally televised games. Sling TV also carries the local FOX channel in most of California so it’s the most affordable option for A’s fans living inside the Oakland A’s market. Those living outside of A’s TV market will still want to pick up Sling for any nationally televised A’s games in 2024
You will likely want to pick up both the Sling Orange and Blue plan for $$$ to get all the channels you need. If you need MLB Network, then you also need to add the sports add-on for an additional $11 per month. You can sign up for Sling and see if this solution will work for you.
If you live outside the A’s territory, then I only recommend Sling for those living in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington, DC, Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Los Angeles, Detroit, Atlanta, Houston, Orlando/Daytona/Melbourne, Tampa/St. Petersburg, Gainesville, Austin, Milwaukee, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Phoenix, and Seattle, Those are the only areas where Sling provides Fox.
Sling TV is supported on Windows and Mac PCs and laptops, Android and iOS devices, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Nexus player, Xbox One, 4th Generation Apple TV, Chromecast, and more.
DIRECTV STREAM
DIRECTV STREAM is a live streaming service that carries NBC Sports California for those living in their broadcast region. However, you have to subscribe to their “Choice” package for $108.99 per month. You can sign up online. They don’t force you into a contract, and you can cancel at any time. DIRECTV STREAM also carries Fox, ESPN, MLB Network, and FS1, which are all the networks that air nationally televised MLB games. This makes it perfect for A’s fans living inside the A’s TV market, but will also provide access to nationally televised A’s games, including games airing on MLB TV.
The service also includes a cloud DVR service and allows you to simultaneously stream to an unlimited number of devices in the home, and up to 3 outside the home. DIRECTV STREAM is supported on Apple TV, Chromecast, Fire TV, iOS, Android, Roku, and more. See our review of DIRECTV STREAM for more details on this streaming service.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV also offers NBC Sports California live. NBC Sports California is included in the base package for $72.99 a month if you live in their broadcast area. The service also provides Fox, ESPN, TBS, and FS1 for nationally televised games. The live streaming service also includes a DVR and supports a host of streaming devices. YouTube TV supports Roku, Android, iOS, Apple TV, Fire TV, Chromecast, and more. Like the other services, YouTube TV offers a free trial, cloud DVR, local broadcast channels, and many other features. Please read our review of YouTube TV for more details on their service.
Hulu Live TV
Hulu Live TV carries NBC Sports California for those subscribers living in the San Francisco / San Jose metro area along with Fox, ESPN, TBS, and FS1. You can check to see which channels are available to you by entering your zip code on Hulu’s channel finder.
Hulu starts with a free trial when you sign up, but costs $76.99 per month after the trial. You can cancel any time without penalty as there is no long term contract. The list below shows some of what Hulu+Live TV has to offer:
- live local ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, and more in most markets of the country
- Carries, ESPN, FOX, and FS1 so you won’t miss nationally televised A’s games not airing on NBC Sports California
- Live access to popular channels found on cable. See Hulu’s channel lineup for a full list.
- Unlimited cloud DVR storage. Recordings delete after 9 months.
- Comes with 6 customizable profiles
- Watch Hulu on 2 screens at once. Watch on unlimited screens for an additional $9.99 per month
- Includes all the on-demand access you normally receive with standard Hulu. This includes Hulu Originals.
You can watch NBC Sports California through Hulu on any of the following devices:
- Roku
- Amazon Fire TV
- Apple TV (4th generation or later)
- Google Chromecast
- iOS and Android Smartphones and Tablets
- Xbox 360 and Xbox One
- Echo Show
- Fire Tablets
- Fire TV and Fire TV Stick
- LG TV (select models)
- Nintendo Switch
- Mac and PC browsers
- Samsung TV (select models)
- VIZIO SmartCast TVs
- Windows 10
MLB.TV
If you don’t live in the A’s TV market, you can watch the A’s through the MLB.TV streaming. With MLB.TV you can watch every game, for every team, all season long. With MLB.TV, you can watch A’s games on Roku, Apple TV, Smart Devices, and more. You can watch A’s games live or on-demand. Here is a list of MLB.TV features:
- Choose to watch both the home and away broadcasts.
- Live Game DVR Controls
- Full Game Archives
- Customized Fantasy Player Tracker
- Clickable line scores
- A Pitch by Pitch Widget, that tracks speed, location, and pitch type
MLB.TV costs $129.99 for the year to have access to every game for every team. The “all-teams plan” has a free trial and provides a monthly pricing option. You can also opt to watch A’s games through the MLB.TV single-team plan for $109.99 for the year. You can check out their subscription packages at MLB.TV.
Please note that MLB.TV does have blackout rules for games where a team is playing in the market you reside. For example, if the A’s are playing the Nationals and you live in the DC area, that game will be blacked out on MLB.TV. You can check your zip code on MLB TV’s website to see which team’s games are under a blackout in your area. Nationally televised games will also be blacked out. The list below provides a general description of whether a game is going to be under a blackout:
- Home and Away games of the designated team if you live within their blackout territory
- Games that broadcast nationally such as the ESPN Sunday game or Fox Saturday game
- Play in games (Playoff tie-breakers)
- Post Season Games, but there is a way around it
Pro Tip: Try This Blackout Workaround to watch the games you want to watch and get around the black-out.
