‘MLB Sunday Leadoff’ coming to Roku: How to watch free

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SAN JOSE, Calif. - Roku announced it has secured the exclusive rights for Major League Baseball "Sunday Leadoff" live games.

Starting May 19, the streaming company said it will offer the Sunday MLB games for free on The Roku Channel, plus a new MLB Zone for baseball fans to discover live and upcoming games, nightly recaps, highlights, and more across the service.

"MLB Sunday Leadoff" will stream every Sunday on The Roku Channel and TheRokuChannel.com with no login required from May 19 to Sept. 15.

The matchups start on May 19 with the St. Louis Cardinals hosting the Boston Red Sox.

A general view of a MLB ball and glove taken before the game between the Boston Red Sox and the Texas Rangers at Rangers Ballpark April 8, 2007 in Arlington, Texas. (Credit: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

"As television programming, live sports, and the leagues have fragmented across networks, apps, and multiple packages, Roku – home to all of them – plays an increasingly crucial role for viewers and advertisers," Charlie Collier, the president for Roku Media, said in a statement. "With this deal, Roku delivers free, live, weekly Sunday baseball and 24/7 baseball curation, destinations, and channels across our platform. The lead-in to all of television is now the lead-off for Sunday baseball as well. It’s a terrific partnership."

Additionally, paying subscribers of MLB.TV can watch all 18 matchups blackout free from anywhere in the world.

"With free games available to anyone, MLB games on Roku will be widely accessible to fans," said Noah Garden, the MLB deputy commissioner of business and media, said. "Since Roku serves as an entertainment gateway for millions, this partnership offers a valuable new promotional and distribution platform for MLB games and content."

How to watch MLB games on Roku

The Roku Channel is widely available to stream for free, with no subscription or sign-up required.

Viewers can watch it on Roku devices or TVs, TheRokuChannel.com, and through the Roku app on iOS and Android devices, Amazon Fire TVs, Samsung TVs and Google TVs and other Android TV OS devices.

The games were previously available through the subscription service Peacock.

This story was reported from Los Angeles.

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