Caption: A logo for Apple TV+'s "Friday Night Baseball" package. | Photo credit: Apple.com
- "Friday Night Baseball" begins the third season on Friday, March 29 with a pair of games: New York Yankees at Houston Astros & St. Louis Cardinals at Los Angeles Dodgers
- The 2024 season is the first season that I will keep track of these broadcasts here on the blog (so I hope you enjoy this new feature here on the website).
Batter up! ⚾ For the third straight season, Apple and Major League Baseball (MLB) are teaming up to televise a weekly Friday night doubleheader for the subscribers of Apple TV+. Fans in 60 countries and regions have access to two signature matchups over 26 weeks without any broadcast restrictions whatsoever (keep in mind that local broadcasters aren't allowed to televise these games, as Friday Night Baseball is a exclusive national broadcast only).
"Friday Night Baseball" premieres for the 2024 season on Friday, March 29, with some of the league's most noteworthy talent set to take the field. At 8 p.m. ET, Juan Soto, Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees take on their longtime nemesis in the American League, the Houston Astros. Later that night, at 10 p.m. ET, Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and the Los Angeles Dodgers play host to the St. Louis Cardinals.
Apple and MLB announced the schedule for the first half of the 2024 season, with game selections announced from Friday, March 29 through Friday, June 28 (these games will be posted below).
Two broadcast teams will once again compromise the "Friday Night Baseball" game announcing roster this season. One broadcast team has Wayne Randazzo (play-by-play), Dontrelle Willis (analyst) & Heidi Watney (sideline reporter). Another broadcast team has Alex Faust (play-by-play), Ryan Spilborghs (analyst) & Tricia Whitaker (sideline reporter). The weekly game assignments for these crews will be shared on a weekly basis, so pay special attention to these announcements.
In addition to the two broadcasting teams, former MLB umpires Ted Barrett, Brian Gorman and Dale Scott break down the calls and the rules, if needed, during each week's slate of broadcasts.
Lauren Gardner (host) is set to lead Apple TV+'s pre and postgame coverage, alongside former MLB player and current analyst Xavier Scruggs, and baseball journalist Russell Dorsey. On Friday, March 29, the "Friday Night Baseball" pregame show previewing the Yankees at Astros and Cardinals at Dodgers game will emanate from Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, featuring interviews with key players, and much more. Throughout the season, the pregame show for the Friday night doubleheader will take place from various MLB stadiums across the league, including Friday, June 3 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia and Friday, July 7 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York.
"Friday Night Baseball" is produced by the Emmy-Award winning production team over at the MLB Network in partnership with Apple's live sports production team, bringing baseball fans a unrivaled viewing experience every single Friday night.
I am so excited to bring you the Apple TV+ national broadcast schedule for the first time! Let's have a wonderful first season documenting these broadcasts together!
The national television schedule is attached below, with announcer assignments to be filled in throughout the season, along with any game updates.
|| 2024 MLB on Apple TV+ Schedule (Friday Night Baseball) | Subject to Change; All Times Eastern
- Note: Additional game selections will be made later on in the season.
| Friday, March 29
. Yankees at Astros - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Cardinals at Dodgers - Apple TV+, 10:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Russell Dorsey
- Russell Dorsey replaces Heidi Watney (back surgery)
| Friday, April 5
. Mets at Reds - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Taylor McGregor
. Astros at Rangers - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Rich Waltz, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, April 12
. Brewers at Orioles - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Cubs at Mariners - Apple TV+, 9:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, April 19
. Rangers at Braves - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Diamondbacks at Giants - Apple TV+, 10:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, April 26
. Cardinals at Mets - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
. Rays at White Sox - Apple TV+, 7:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
| Friday, May 3
. Blue Jays at Nationals - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Giants at Phillies - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dan Plesac, Heidi Watney
| Friday, May 10
. Diamondbacks at Orioles - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Rich Waltz, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Royals at Angels - Apple TV+, 9:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, May 17
. Rays at Blue Jays - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Twins at Guardians - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, May 24
. Brewers at Red Sox - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Orioles at White Sox - Apple TV+, 7:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, May 31
. Tigers at Red Sox - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Dan Plesac, Tricia Whitaker
. Angels at Mariners - Apple TV+, 10:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, June 7
. Twins at Pirates - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Dodgers at Yankees - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, June 14
. Rangers at Mariners - Apple TV+, 10:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Angels at Giants - Apple TV+, 10:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, June 21
. Diamondbacks at Phillies - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Tom McCarthy, Ryan Spilborghs, John Kruk, Taryn Hatcher
. Braves at Yankees - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, June 28
. Padres at Red Sox - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Astros at Mets - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Xavier Scruggs, Heidi Watney
| Friday, July 5
. Phillies at Braves - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Tigers at Reds - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Rich Waltz, Xavier Scruggs, Heidi Watney
| Friday, July 12
. Guardians at Rays - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Cubs at Cardinals - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, July 19
. Tigers at Blue Jays - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Padres at Guardians - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, July 26
. Rangers at Blue Jays - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Dodgers at Astros - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, August 2
. Brewers at Nationals - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Royals at Tigers - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, August 9
. Guardians at Twins - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Reds at Brewers - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, August 16
. Blue Jays at Cubs - Apple TV+, 2:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
. Mariners at Pirates - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
| Friday, August 23
. Reds at Pirates - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Taylor McGregor
. Cardinals at Twins - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, August 30
. Padres at Rays - Apple TV+, 6:30 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Mariners at Angels - Apple TV+, 9:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, September 6
. Twins at Royals - Apple TV+, 8:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Giants at Padres - Apple TV+, 9:30 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, September 13
. Red Sox at Yankees - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Dodgers at Braves - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
| Friday, September 20
. Tigers at Orioles - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs, Tricia Whitaker
. Phillies at Mets - Apple TV+, 7:00 PM (ET) - Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis, Heidi Watney
- Sources: Apple.com / Newsroom
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My predictions for next Friday's games
ReplyDeleteYankees vs Astros- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Cardinals vs Dodgers- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs, and Tricia Whitaker
My predictions for Friday's games
ReplyDeleteMets vs Reds- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Russell Dorsey (Heidi Watney is probably gonna be out for a bit)
Astros vs Rangers- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilborghs and Tricia Whitaker
I wonder if Alex Faust will take a break to call the Stanley cup playoffs.
ReplyDeleteAlso, here are my predictions for tomorrow's games
Brewers vs Orioles- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker or Taylor McGregor
Cubs vs Mariners- Rich Waltz, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
@Mark T. Mark, I think that Alex Faust will take a break for a few weeks due to the Stanley Cup Playoffs (TNT is gonna need a LOT of announcers for the postseason), so expect Rich Waltz to pick up a few games over the next few weeks.
DeleteLast season, Waltz called plenty of early season Apple TV+ games due to Faust's Stanley Cup Playoffs commitment, so this year should be no different in that regard.
That makes sense.
ReplyDeletePredictions
ReplyDeleteRangers vs Braves- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Diamondbacks vs Giants- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Faust, Spilboroghs and Whitaker are working Rangers-Braves while Randazzo, Willis and Watney are calling DBacks-Giants
ReplyDeletePredictions for Friday night
ReplyDeleteCardinals vs Mets- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Rays vs White Sox- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Randazzo and his crew are going to Philly while Faust and his crew are going to DC.
ReplyDeleteRandazzo will call Royals-Angels.
ReplyDelete@Mark T. Thanks, Mark! Makes sense since Wayne is the primary Angels local TV voice, plus Dontrelle called the Royals-Angels game last night for FS1.
DeleteAlex Faust is on assignment calling the Edmonton-Vancouver Western Conference Semifinal series for TNT this weekend, so Rich Waltz takes Faust's place alongside Tricia Whitaker & Ryan Spilborghs on the Diamondbacks-Orioles game.
Yeah. Surprising that Waltz didn't replace Faust when he called Panthers-Lightning a few weeks ago.
DeleteRandazzo, Willis and Watney are calling Twins-Guardians.
ReplyDeleteWhy did Dan Plesac do Twins-Guardians?
ReplyDelete@Mark T. I'm sorry, Mark, for the confusion. Dontrelle Willis actually did MIN/CLE this part Friday night. In addition to his Friday night Apple TV+ duties, Willis often does studio work for FOX on Saturdays (and Willis often has to travel from his Friday night game site to Los Angeles on short notice). So sometimes, Dan Plesac calls an occasional game to give Willis a week off. I checked Plesac's Twitter account today, and he was in the studio on Friday night (so that eliminates him from calling MIN/CLE).
DeleteOk. Thanks for clearing that up.
DeletePredictions for Friday
ReplyDeleteBrewers vs Red Sox- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Orioles vs White Sox- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Predictions
ReplyDeleteTwins vs Pirates- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs or Dan Plesac and Tricia Whitaker
Dodgers vs Yankees- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Spilboroghs is working with Faust tonight
ReplyDeleteDbacks vs Phillies- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
ReplyDeleteBraves vs Yankees- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
@Mark T. Mark, are these are your weekly predictions or actually confirmed assignments? Just curious to know.
DeleteThose are my predictions. I forgot to specify. Sorry for the confusion.
DeleteVery cool that the Phillies broadcasters are calling tomorrow's game.
ReplyDelete@Mark T. Mark, it was very cool indeed to see some of the Phillies announcers getting a chance to call a game nationally. Obviously, Tom McCarthy has called games nationally, particularly on the football side with CBS. John Kruk has done national work too, albeit it's been a few years since Kruk worked a national broadcast (while he was still with ESPN). Diamondbacks-Phillies was Taryn Hatcher's first MLB broadcast (I believe). She did some playoff hockey for TNT a year or two ago.
DeleteI didn't realize Hatcher did playoff hockey.
DeleteWhy Xavier Scruggs?
ReplyDelete@Mark T. Mark, Dontrelle Willis probably wasn't available for this week's game. So, Apple TV+ had to bring in a replacement (and thus Scruggs was chosen). I have seen Xavier's work on MLB Network and ESPN. I think he is a very good broadcaster, in my opinion.
DeleteOk. That's good.
DeletePredictions for Friday night
ReplyDeletePhillies vs Braves- Tom Mccarthy, Dontrelle Willis, John Kruk and Taryn Hatcher
Tigers vs Reds- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Predictions
ReplyDeleteGuardians vs Rays- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Cubs vs Cardinals- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Predictions
ReplyDeleteTigers vs Blue Jays- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Padres vs Guardians- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Predictions
ReplyDeleteRangers vs Blue Jays- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Dodgers vs Astros- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Predictions
ReplyDeleteRoyals vs Tigers- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Brewers vs Nationals- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
8/2, Royals @ Tigers: Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
ReplyDeleteOdd that next Friday they have the Blue Jays vs Cubs game at 2:00.
ReplyDeleteMy predictions
ReplyDeleteBlue Jays vs Cubs- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Mariners vs Pirates- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Predictions
ReplyDeleteReds vs Pirates Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Cardinals vs Twins- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker
Predictions
ReplyDeletePadres vs Rays- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Mariners vs Angels- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker or Taylor McGregor
Predictions for next Friday games
ReplyDeletePhillies vs Mets- Wayne Randazzo, Dontrelle Willis and Heidi Watney
Tigers vs Orioles- Alex Faust, Ryan Spilboroghs and Tricia Whitaker