A Look Back at MLB Opening Day: How RSNs and National Broadcasters Pulled It Off

At long last, baseball returned last week, as millions of viewers tuned in to see the long awaited return of America’s Pastime. MLB Opening Day marked the culmination of months of planning by both regional sports networks and national broadcasters to get baseball back on the air. SVG’s MLB Returns series delves into how broadcasters are bringing games to viewers at home, including inside looks at ESPN and MLB Network, how audio is being handled in empty ballparks, and Fox Sports’ virtual fans effort. The series also looks at how RSNs are handling the world feed productions for all games, including in-depth stories on Fox Sports Regional Networks, NBC Sports Regional Networks, AT&T SportsNets, NESN, and MASN. And stay tuned for more coverage in the coming weeks.

Inside the Fox Sports Arizona truck with (from left) Diamondbacks producer Jeff Gowen, director Brian Maas, and TD Joel Blosser.

Check out all of SVG’s ‘MLB Returns’ coverage:

• RSNs Take Over World Feed for All MLB Broadcasts, Customize for In-Market Fans
• ESPN Preps Normal Sunday Night Baseball Graphics Package for ‘Enhanced World Feed’
• Wearing Two Production Hats, MLB Network Deploys Full At-Home Model, Provides RSN Infrastructure
• Baseball Has Its Crowds on an iPad With Artificial Fan Noise
• As RSNs Handle World Feeds, Sinclair’s Fox Sports RSNs Shoulder Production Load
• NBC Sports Regional Networks Seeks Balance Between World Feed and Serving In-Market Fans
• NESN To Produce ‘Red Sox-ized’ In-Market Broadcasts in Addition to World Feed
• AT&T SportsNet RSNs Use Mix of Studio, Mobile Facilities for World Feed, In-Market Productions
• MASN Tested Early With Back-to-Back-to-Back World Feeds for National Broadcasts
• Fox Sports Augments MLB on Fox Telecasts With Virtual Fans
• …and stay tuned for more in the coming weeks!