Baseball is back in Crush City — or Clutch City, Space City, Screw City, whatever you’re partial to. The Astros look considerably different this year with Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman playing elsewhere. And the process of actually watching them keeps getting harder, with more tributaries in the streaming game and blackout rules on national broadcasts.
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Here, we navigate the tangled cords to explain what you need for viewing all 162 games, and which ones will be subject to regional blackouts. We also highlight the primetime slots in Houston’s first-half schedule (second-half will be announced later in the season). May the orange on your Jose Altuve jersey still pop, and may your calls to 281-330-8004 go right through. Lastly, let’s get one “Holy Toledo!” for the H-Town legend Milo Hamilton.
How to stream regional Astros broadcasts in-market
Fubo (try for free)
Without cable, Fubo has the most games covered this season. Anything on Space City Home Network, ESPN, Fox or MLB Network can be streamed here; TBS cannot.
What you need to watch these games: The “pro” plan starts at $84.99 monthly, with an extra charge for 4K ultra-HD. For more, there is the MLB.TV add-on, which streams every out-of-market game for $29.99 a month, and the Sports Lite package (with MLB Network) for $9.99 a month.
Space City Home Network
This is the digital home for the Astros and the NBA’s Houston Rockets. The network is co-owned by both franchises. Native Houstonian Todd Kalas is back for his seventh season as the ‘Stros’ television narrator, having called ALCS-or-better squads in his first six campaigns. Kalas is the son of an all-time great sportscaster — Harry Kalas, who called Philadelphia Phillies games from 1971 to 2009 and did voice-overs for NFL Films. That prolific career started in the Houston Astrodome in 1965.
Kalas and Geoff Blum have a natural and sunny Texas chemistry. Blum had two separate stints in Houston, playing a total of five seasons and hitting .259. His definitive moment in front of Houston fans came in Game 3 of the 2005 World Series — a go-ahead frozen rope homer in the 14th inning … for the Chicago White Sox. It’s not too awkward now that the club has racked up hardware of its own.
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The vast majority of games are available on Space City Home Network. Regional sports networks (RSNs) just don’t cover national broadcasts. Games on Apple TV exclusives are also blacked out, but games on MLB Network and Roku’s “Sunday Leadoff” series are available.
What you need to watch these games: Fubo, DirecTV Stream (starting $80-90 monthly), Amazon Prime (FDSN add-on at $20/month), FanDuel Sports Network app ($20/month or starting at $106 annually)
How to watch the regional broadcasts on cable and satellite
What you need to watch these games: A carrier that has Space City Home Network
- Astound (formerly known as EnTouch)
- AT&T
- Btel
- Comcast Xfinity
- Consolidated Communications
- DirecTV
- I-Net
- Phonoscope
How to watch the regional broadcasts out-of-market
MLB Network airs almost 300 local broadcasts for national audiences, so out-of-towners will find some Space City Home Network games there. MLB Network also offers 26 unique, produced-in-house “showcase” games not subject to local blackouts.
The MLB.TV subscription has every game except the ones on national TV and in-market RSNs, which are determined by zip code. As long as you’re not in the Astros’ region, you’ll have access to all the local broadcasts for a one-time cost of $150. Fubo has the MLB.TV add-on for $29.99 a month.
What you need to watch these games: MLB Network for select games / MLB.TV for all of them
How to watch the national TV games
ESPN
The league has partnered with ESPN since 1990; that ends this fall. Yup, the purveyors of the iconic music are indeed opting out of their remaining baseball broadcasts. For this season, you’ll still find select primetime Astros games. Karl Ravech and Jon Sciambi are usually on the mic. Think Sundays, especially “Sunday Night Baseball.” The first-half schedule lists Houston on ESPN once: Sunday, April 20, against Fernando Tatis Jr. and his San Diego Padres. These games can also be streamed on ESPN+.
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Fox/FS1
Fox is where you’ll hear Joe Davis or Adam Amin on the call, plus former MLB pitcher John Smoltz. Fox often has a Saturday spot. Right now, the Astros are scheduled for two FS1 looks: Saturday, April 19, versus the Padres and the following Saturday in Kansas City.
TBS
This is the Tuesday action. Brian Anderson does the “TBS Tuesday” games; Pedro Martínez, Curtis Granderson and other former players appear on their studio show. TBS broadcasts can also be streamed on Max. Joe Espada’s group doesn’t have anything scheduled here yet.
Roku
The purple metropolis now has “MLB Sunday Leadoff” games free from blackout restrictions. The intrastate Houston-Texas series gets its Sunday game here.
Apple TV+
Houston has one first-half draw on Apple TV: Friday, May 16, versus Texas.
In general, think Apple TV on Friday, Fox on Saturday, ESPN on Sunday, with those games frustratingly blacked out for local viewers.
Astros odds for 2025
Wins
Playoffs
Streaming and Betting/Odds links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
(Photo of Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña: Tim Warner / Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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