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First Exclusive MLB Game On Facebook Has Different Look

MLB had its first nationally exclusive game on Facebook Watch this afternoon. Phillies-Mets got off to an inauspicious start, as rain delayed the start to the game by around 90 minutes. For the first 40 minutes of the delay, there was only a blank screen explaining the rain delay. MLB Net's Scott Braun then came on with analysts Cliff Floyd and John Kruk and responded to questions from the Facebook comments section during the pregame broadcast. The 20 minutes leading up to the first pitch operated like any other MLB pregame, with commentary, shots of players warming up and fans in their seats.

During game play, Facebook had no commercial breaks, instead opting for views from the field or upcoming batters, interviews or images of stats. For the first inning or so, Facebook had large graphics on the top and left of the screen with normal strikes, balls, inning, etc. There was empty space that seemed to show where advertising might go. The full-screen feed then dropped the top rotating bar and left-side bar, opting for traditional full-screen image and stat card. The game broadcast also included instant replays branded with the Facebook Watch logo and graphics, and all the typical camera angles and cutaways seen during an MLB Net broadcast. 

Outside of full-screen mode, there also was the inclusion of fan comments and athlete posts in the top bar as “Viewer Feedback” during the game. Viewership at presstime, in the third inning, hovered at around 86,200 viewerss, with over 1.1 million reactions. Meanwhile, SNY will show a replay of today's game tonight at 8:00pm after finalizing a deal last night.

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