How to watch the Marlins on television & streaming in 2024

It’s no secret that regional sports networks are struggling. The traditional cable audience has been shrinking rapidly, making it more difficult for the RSNs to cover the rights fees that they owe to the teams they're partnered with. After Diamond Sports Group (the operator of the Bally Sports networks) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2023, it seemingly signaled the end of an era.

But January brought a plot twist. It was announced that Amazon had agreed to make a $115 million investment in the company once it exited bankruptcy, acquiring access to the streaming rights currently owned by Diamond. That agreement was recently approved by a judge.

Diamond has the rights to broadcast 38 pro sports teams, including 11 Major League Baseball teams. However, only five of these MLB teams also have their digital rights owned by Diamond: the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers and Miami Marlins.

Marlins fans should be bracing for the inevitability that major changes are coming to their streaming options in the future. For the 2024 season, however, you'll be able to stick with a familiar routine, as confirmed by Bally Sports Florida on Thursday. In a press release, they announced a 161-game regular season schedule of local Marlins broadcasts. Only the June 8 matchup against the Cleveland Guardians is being broadcasted exclusively by FOX.

All of Bally's 2023 personalities are returning: play-by-play announcer Paul Severino, analysts Tommy Hutton, Rod Allen, Gaby Sanchez and Jeff Nelson, pregame/postgame host Craig Minervini, hosts/in-game reporters Jessica Blaylock and Kelly Saco, and digital host/reporter Jeremy Taché. Alex Avila is a new addition as pregame/postgame analyst.

As an alternative to a standard cable subscription. Florida-based fans also have access to a Marlins Season Pass. For $105.99, it allows you to watch all Marlins and Florida Panthers game broadcasts through September 29 (there is a Sunsports Season Pass that bundles the Rays and Miami Heat for the same price). For out-of-market folks, an all-teams MLB.TV subscription is still your best bet (priced at $149.99 for the year and includes a seven-day free trial). 

Earlier reporting from Daniel Kaplan of Awful Announcing outlined a potential plan for Amazon to use Diamond's digital rights to offer streaming of these games through Prime Video Channels, requiring an additional purchase on top of the standard Prime Video subscription. That may be the direction this goes further down the road. For 2024, though, Bally is still delivering Marlins games on its own.

The Marlins were one of the last Bally-affiliated MLB teams to extend their rights deal before the RSN model fell into this crisis. That extension took effect in 2021 and runs beyond the 2025 season.