Let’s put this into perspective. Let’s say you have two number one prospects for both respective teams playing in a spring training game and they will face each other. You would think that the game would be streamed right?

Wrong! Last week, the Pittsburgh Pirates took on the Baltimore Orioles in a spring training game that was a must-watch for baseball fans. Number one overall pick Paul Skenes for the Pirates took on last season’s number one overall pick for the Orioles Jackson Holiday, and you think a sport that wants to grow the game would have this broadcasted.

It is embarrassing that Major League Baseball did not show this game. They should have had ESPN covering this game. I mean Yamamoto’s debut was at least on television. But having the future of the MLB, a battle that will be on screens for years to come, to not have the game at least on TV is criminal.

This begs the question of should spring training games be streamed. For me, I say yes they should. Fans from all over the world tune in to spring training to watch games. Also, some fans want to watch prospects play. I get that MLB introduced breakout games but that so a scheduled game where prospects are going to play each other.

But when both number one prospects in their respective organizations faced off and Skenes hit 102 today, there was nothing. It is a missed opportunity here by the MLB to grow the game. It seems like every year the MLB does something else to further the way the game is grown.

In my opinion, you should at least have seventy-five percent of spring training games on TV. That way you can make sure that when there is an explosive matchup, it will be viewable to everyone. Even MLB TV should have had the Pirates, and Orioles game as a free game.

It was a great game that featured a ton of high-end prospects and explosive offense. Jorge Mateo hit two home runs, Skenes faced off against Holiday, Holiday had two hits and one of them was a triple. This was a missed opportunity by the MLB to showcase the bright future of these organizations and robbed fans of a great match-up.

This is why more spring training games need to be aired. I get they do not matter but at the same time, it matters to watch players compete to make the show roster for opening day. That is why spring training games need to be streamed.