Nationals Officially Leave MASN, What That Means for Fans Going Forward

How the new broadcasting situation impacts Washington Nationals fans going forward.

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It had been rumored for a while, but the Washington Nationals have now officially left their broadcasting deal with MASN and will instead partner with Major League Baseball to broadcast and distribute their games.

MASN, or Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, was a network controlled by their regional competitor -- the Baltimore Orioles -- making this agreement one of the strangest in sports. Back in 2004, when the Nationals moved from Montreal to the nation's capital, the MLB struck a deal to appease Orioles owner Peter Angelos when it came to local broadcast rights. Unsurprisingly, the teams disagreed on the value of revenue that was paid out, and that resulted in multiple court battles.

Now, Washington won't have to deal with that after announcing this partnership with Major League Baseball that will begin during the upcoming 2026 season.

NATIONALS TV is here‼️

watch nats games all year (NO BLACKOUTS) with https://t.co/M7AONBLYL5 pic.twitter.com/4bpjygPBDn

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) January 14, 2026

"Today's announcement represents a new chapter for Washington Nationals baseball," managing principal owner Mark Lerner said in a press release, per MLB.com. "We are excited to have already begun work with the talented team at MLB, and the collaboration is off to a strong start as we work together to elevate the viewing experience with world-class broadcasts across television and streaming."

The Nationals are now the seventh team whose local games will be produced and distributed by Major League Baseball, joining the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners.

What This Means for Nationals Fans

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Change is always occurring for fans in the modern sports landscape when it comes to actually watching the games, so that unknown can be a bit scary when it comes to finding where everything is going to be broadcasted. However, this move seems like it's going to be a major plus for the fanbase.

"Fans within the Nationals home television markets can watch Nationals.TV on cable and satellite television or stream live through Nationals.TV. Information on cable and satellite providers, including specific channel locations, will be announced at a later date. Fans can purchase a Nationals.TV streaming subscription through MLB.com or the MLB App when packages go on sale in February. Visit nats.com/Watch to receive updates as soon as they are available," the press released stated.

Out-of-market fans can also stream Nationals games via the ESPN app after ESPN became the distributor of the sport's long-standing MLB.tv streaming service, meaning all Washington fans will be able to watch the product going forward regardless of where they are located.

Who Will Be on the Nationals' Broadcasts?

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This is something that isn't quite clear at the time of writing. Longtime commentator Bob Carpenter retired after the 2025 season, and the team has not announced a replacement. But the Nationals will still control who calls their games, so this will be a team decision whenever that time comes.

According to Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post (subscription required), color commentator Kevin Frandsen is expected to be back for the upcoming campaign. One change that was announced is that Washington is bringing on Alexa Datt to be the team's new sideline reporter after she was most recently part of the St. Louis Cardinals' television coverage.

Figuring out who is going to be the play-by-play commentator seems like the next step for the Nationals as they enter this new era of broadcast distribution, which is something that appears like it will be a major benefit for everyone in this fanbase.