ESPN has announced it is moving up the starting time of the
nationally televised “Sunday Night Baseball” game by one hour, with the first
pitch planned for shortly after 7 p.m. ET.
“From a travel perspective, it’s amazing what (difference)
one hour can make,” said Boston Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave
Dombrowski, whose World Series champions have been selected for five Sunday
night games next year.
Philadelphia hosts Atlanta in the first Sunday night game
next season, on March 31, the second game of a television doubleheader that
begins with Texas playing the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Among other Sunday night games next year will be a World
Series rematch between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston at Fenway Park on
July 14, four games between the Red Sox and New York Yankees (June 2 and Aug. 4
in the Bronx, July 28 and Sept. 8 in Boston) and the Little League Classic with
Pittsburgh and the Cubs playing Aug. 18 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
The Sept. 8 game will start at 8 p.m. — both teams play
again at Fenway Park the following day.
ESPN started the “Sunday Night Baseball” telecast in 1990,
and it developed into a showcase time slot. It nearly always is the only game
scheduled for that time.
But players who had to travel after games complained they
reached the next city at dawn, disrupting their sleep schedules ahead of the
next series against an opponent that usually has more rest.
Major League Baseball has been more cognizant of player
health issues in recent years. As part of the collective bargaining agreement
that started in 2017, baseball scheduled earlier start times for many weekday
games on getaway days beginning last season.
MLB also is nearing an announcement on broadcast coverage
for its first games in Britain, between the Red Sox and the Yankees on June 29
and 30.
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