By Jim Kimble / Updated March 31, 2023
You can watch Washington Nationals games live without a cable TV or satellite package using these streaming services:
Most games are on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN).
Nationally televised games during the regular season in 2023 are on FOX, ESPN, FS1, TBS and MLB Network. A few post-season games air on ABC.
How to Watch Washington Nationals Games Without Cable
The Washington Nationals broadcast most of their games on MASN. The regional sports channel has exclusive rights to in-market Washington Nationals games.
MASN is only carried by one streaming service, DIRECTV STREAM. The live TV streaming service has a wide variety of news, entertainment and sports channels that is similar to its satellite service. DIRECTV STREAM has a 5-day free trial.
| STREAMING SERVICE | MASN | ESPN/FOX/FS1/TBS |
|---|---|---|
| DIRECTV STREAM | Yes | Yes |
| fubo TV | No | No TBS |
| Hulu Live TV | No | Yes |
| Sling TV | No | Yes |
| YouTube TV | No | Yes |
Where can I watch MASN?
MASN is available to pay-tv subscribers in the Mid-Atlantic region and the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area.
The network is generally available in Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia, eastern and central North Carolina, south central Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.
Keep in mind that streaming MLB games on MASN isn’t your only option. Regular season games that are part of the national broadcast schedule cost much less to watch.
Cord-cutters can watch some national broadcast games for free using a TV antenna. You can also watch the World Series with your TV antenna because it airs on FOX.
Apple TV+ will stream two live baseball games on Friday nights during the 2023 MLB season. NBC’s Peacock is streaming games on Sunday mornings. The schedules for those games are below.
How to Stream Washington Nationals Games on Roku, Fire TV Stick
Watching live Washington Nationals games without cable TV is pretty simple. You just need a few things to start streaming MLB games on your TV.
- A streaming service that carries MASN and the channels that carry national broadcast Washington Nationals games
- An Internet connection
- A Smart TV or streaming device such as a Roku connected to your TV
You can watch live TV channels through the app of streaming services such as DIRECTV STREAM. Live TV streaming services have apps for Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Google Chromecast with Google TV.
These apps are available on Smart TVs, iPhones, iPads (with current iOS) and Android mobile devices. You can watch live TV on a PC through a web browser.
(Photo illustration: Jim Kimble / The Cord Cutting Report)
DIRECTV STREAM
DIRECTV STREAM has every channel needed to watch Washington Nationals games in 2023.
A subscription costs $99.99 per month for 105 channels.
Key baseball channels including ESPN, FS1, TBS and MLB Network are in the Choice lineup.
Those aren’t the only sports channels in the mix. Choice subscribers get ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3, ACC Network, Big Ten Network, CBS Sports Network, SEC Network, NBA TV, Longhorn Network, MLB Network, ESPNews and ESPN Deportes.
You have local channels such as ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX as well.
Subscribers can get three months of HBO Max, Showtime, Cinemax and MGM+ for free before the monthly rates kick in. You can watch live TV on unlimited screens within your home.
You can sign up for a free 5-day trial without any obligations. Every plan includes unlimited Cloud DVR and a robust library of on-demand movies and shows.
There are no contracts. There are no additional regional sports fees.You can subscribe month to month and cancel whenever you want.
DIRECTV STREAM works on Roku, Android TV, Fire TV devices, Apple TV and smartphones and tablets.
You can look over the different channel lineups before making any decisions.
MLB.tv
The MLB also has MLB.tv which live streams all out-of-market games for every team.
Washington Nationals games are blacked out for fans living in the team’s home broadcast region. The service allows subscribers who live in an out-of-market area to watch Nationals games.
A subscription to MLB.tv costs $24.99 per month. Amazon Prime members can get a free 7-day trial of MLB.tv through Amazon Channels. The regular rate kicks in once the trial ends.
Apple TV+
Apple TV+ is delivering two weekly Friday night games during the 2023 MLB season.
Apple TV+ subscribers can watch MLB games along with a number of original movies and TV shows. A subscription costs $6.99 per month after a free 7-day trial.
Apple TV+ works on most major streaming devices, including Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast with Google TV. Smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, Vizio, Panasonic and Hisense are also supported.
Are the Washington Nationals on Apple TV+?
The Washington Nationals are not scheduled to play any games streaming on Apple TV+ during the first leg of the season, which runs through June 30. Here is the schedule.
| DATE | TIME (ET) | GAME |
|---|---|---|
| April 7 | 2:20 p.m. | Rangers at Cubs |
| April 7 | 7:20 p.m. | Padres at Braves |
| April 14 | 6:40 p.m. | Giants at Tigers |
| April 14 | 7:10 p.m. | Angels at Red Sox |
| April 21 | 7:05 p.m. | Blue Jays at Yankees |
| April 21 | 7:20 p.m. | Astros at Braves |
| April 28 | 8:10 p.m. | Phillies at Astros |
| April 28 | 10:10 p.m. | Cardinals at Dodgers |
| May 5 | 6:40 p.m. | White Sox at Reds |
| May 5 | 7:10 p.m. | Twins at Guardians |
| May 12 | 8:10 p.m. | Royals at Brewers |
| May 12 | 8:10 p.m. | Cubs at Twins |
| May 19 | 7:07 p.m. | Orioles at Blue Jays |
| May 19 | 7:20 p.m. | Mariners at Braves |
| May 26 | 7:05 p.m. | Padres at Yankees |
| May 26 | 7:10 p.m. | White Sox at Tigers |
| June 2 | 5:10 p.m. | Brewers at Reds |
| June 2 | 8:10 p.m. | Guardians at Twins |
| June 9 | 7:05 p.m. | Royals at Orioles |
| June 9 | 9:38 p.m. | Mariners at Angels |
| June 16 | 8:10 p.m. | Pirates at Brewers |
| June 16 | 10:10 p.m. | White Sox at Mariners |
| June 23 | 6:40 p.m. | Pirates at Marlins |
| June 23 | 7:05 p.m. | Mets at Phillies |
| June 23 | 7:05 p.m. | Brewers at Pirates |
| June 30 | 9:38 p.m. | Diamondbacks at Angels |
Peacock
Peacock begins streaming Sunday morning MLB games on April 23.
Games will be available on the Premium plan. Peacock Premium costs $4.99 per month. There is a free 7-day trial for Peacock Premium.
Peacock works on Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku. The service has apps for a wide variety of Android TV-enabled Smart TVs, including Sony. Smart TVs by LG, Samsung, Vizio and Hisense are supported as well.
You can sign up for a free 7-day trial for Peacock Premium.
Are the Washington Nationals on Peacock?
The Washington Nationals are scheduled to play one game on Peacock this season. Here is the schedule.
| DATE | TIME (ET) | GAME |
|---|---|---|
| April 23 | 12:05 p.m. | Colorado Rockies at Philadelphia Phillies |
| April 30 | 12:05 p.m. | Chicago Cubs at Miami Marlins |
| May 7 | 11:35 a.m. | Baltimore Orioles at Atlanta Braves |
| May 14 | 11:35 a.m. | Los Angeles Angels at Cleveland Guardians |
| May 21 | 11:35 a.m. | New York Yankees at Cincinnati Reds |
| May 28 | 11:35 a.m. | Los Angeles Dodgers at Tampa Bay Rays |
| June 4 | 11:35 a.m. | St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates |
| June 11 | 11:35 a.m. | Arizona Diamondbacks at Detroit Tigers |
| June 18 | 1:05 p.m. | Baltimore Orioles at Chicago Cubs |
| July 2 | 12:05 p.m. | Minnesota Twins at Baltimore Orioles |
| July 9 | 12:05 p.m. | Texas Rangers at Washington Nationals |
| July 16 | 12:05 p.m. | San Francisco Giants at Pittsburgh Pirates |
| July 23 | 12:05 p.m. | San Diego Padres at Detroit Tigers |
| July 30 | 12:05 p.m. | Los Angeles Angels at Toronto Blue Jays |
| August 6 | 12:05 p.m. | Chicago White Sox at Cleveland Guardians |
| August 13 | 12:05 p.m. | Detroit Tigers at Boston Red Sox |
| August 20 | 1:05 p.m. | Seattle Mariners at Houston Astros |
| August 27 | 12:05 p.m. | Los Angeles Angels at New York Mets |
| September 3 | 1:05 p.m. | Philadelphia Phillies at Milwaukee Brewers |
ESPN+
ESPN+ is streaming one live MLB game per day that is part of the national broadcast schedule.
Out-of-market games are still governed by local blackout restrictions. You can look over the MLB ESPN+ schedule for regular season games.
You will need your local regional sports channel to watch home games.
Replays are made available after a live game streams on ESPN+. A subscription to ESPN+ costs $9.99 per month, and you can bundle ESPN+ with Hulu and Disney+.
How to Watch Nationals games free with a TV antenna
A TV antenna is the best way to watch Washington Nationals games that are carried on ABC and FOX for free.
If you have a TV antenna handy, but haven’t used it in a while, plug it into your television’s coax port and scan for channels. FOX broadcasts games throughout the regular season. ABC becomes a key channel for post-season games.
If you are new to TV antennas, here is a list of resources that I have written to get you started.
- How to Choose the Best TV Antenna and OTA DVR
- How to Connect Multiple TVs to One Antenna
- Review: The Best Indoor TV Antennas
- Review: The Best Outdoor TV Antennas
Are Washington Nationals Games on YouTube TV?
No, YouTube TV does not carry MASN.
YouTube TV does have Washington National games on channels such as ESPN, FS1 and TBS for nationally televised games. A subscription costs $72.99 per month for 128 live TV channels and unlimited Cloud DVR.
Can I watch the Washington Nationals on Hulu?
You can watch the Washington Nationals on Hulu Live TV when national broadcast games air on ESPN, FS1, TBS and local FOX channels. But Hulu’s live TV plan does not carry MASN, which has home games for the Nationals. A subscription includes 75 live TV channels, and unlimited Cloud DVR for $69.99 per month.
Can I watch Nationals games on Sling TV?
Sling Orange subscribers can watch the Washington Nationals when games are on ESPN and TBS. FS1 is on the Sling Blue plan. Sling TV does not carry any regional sports networks, but does have a sports add-on bundle, which includes MLB Network and MLB Strike Zone.
Local FOX stations are in a limited number of markets. If you live in or around one of these cities, then you should be able to watch the Reds when games are on local FOX stations:
- Atlanta
- Austin
- Chicago
- Dallas/Fort Worth
- Detroit
- Gainesville
- Houston
- Los Angeles
- Milwaukee
- Minneapolis/St. Paul
- New York
- Orlando/Daytona/Melbourne
- Philadelphia
- Phoenix
- San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose
- Seattle
- Tampa/St. Petersburg
- Washington, DC
Can I watch the Washington Nationals on Fox Sports?
You can watch the Washington Nationals when the team plays games that air on Fox Sports 1, and are on the national broadcast schedule. Other national broadcast games air on TBS, MLB Network and local FOX stations.
How to watch Washington Nationals on TV today
If you want to watch Washington Nationals games on MASN without cable in 2023, you have one option.
DIRECTV STREAM has 105 live TV channels, including local networks, ESPN, TNT and TBS for $99.99 per month. Subscribers can watch on unlimited screens and Cloud DVR space. You can look over the channel lineup, or sign up for a free 5-day trial.
What channel is the Washington Nationals game on tonight?
Washington Nationals games are typically on MASN. The schedule below breaks down what channel or streaming service has national broadcast games for the 2023 MLB season.
| DAY | WASHINGTON NATIONALS MLB NATIONAL BROADCAST |
|---|---|
| Sunday morning | Peacock |
| Sunday afternoon | TBS |
| Sunday night | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| Monday night | ESPN or FS1 |
| Tuesday night | TBS |
| Wednesday Night | ESPN, FS1, MLB Network |
| Thursday Night | ESPN, FOX and MLB Network |
| Friday Night | Apple TV+ |
| Saturday Afternoon | FOX |
| Saturday Night | FOX, FS1 |
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NOTE: This article was published April 6, 2022, and has been updated.
