Entertainment
MLB Is Planning on Stealing Another Sport from Its Fans
By Jennifer Asencio
| Published
Over the winter, football fans hoping to tune into the NFL’s traditional Christmas Day games on television were disappointed unless they had Netflix. The NFL postseason was also relegated to streaming, with viewers needing no fewer than seven subscription services to be able to follow all the action.
This led to widespread fan dissatisfaction. Now, it looks like Major League Baseball is poised to do something similar.
Last baseball season, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred revealed plans to acquire the local broadcasting rights from all the regional sports networks that air baseball games and package them into a single deal with a single network. Manfred predicted he could get all the teams on board with this plan by 2028. These plans were understated until they were reported by coverage of the San Francisco Giants in January 2026.
MLB already controls the national rights, and in the past, this meant games were broadcast on cable channels like ESPN or TBS. Much of the postseason is usually on FS1, and the World Series is aired on Fox. But local games always appeared on local networks, like the Yankees’ YES, the Mets’ SNY, the Dodgers’ SportsNet LA, or San Francisco’s NBC Sports Bay Area. Manfred’s plan would mean even those broadcasts would fly under a single banner.
Smaller teams have deals with local cable affiliate networks like Bally Sports and FanDuel, the latter of which has been facing significant financial upheaval in recent years, despite also broadcasting NBA games. But larger teams have financial stakes in their networks, and all the teams manage their own commentators, who are usually local celebrity institutions and famous past players. This plan seems to both nationalize and homogenize local baseball broadcasting, taking much of the game’s flavor away from fans of each team.
SNY contributed to a symptom of this when it parted ways with Mets broadcast director John DeMarsico. Although controversial rumors spread about the “real” reasons for his departure, the official reason given by both his social media account and SNY is that he was let go over “creative differences.”
The reason this is significant, even if the rumors are true, is that DeMarsico branded his work with the hashtag #Baseballiscinema because he wove the narrative of Mets games using cinematic techniques like fades and split screens that were inspired by movies. He would often share clips of himself and his crew using these techniques, showcasing them alongside the movie scenes that inspired them, from classics such as Kill Bill, Apocalypse Now, and Raging Bull.
These things made DeMarsico’s broadcasts very distinctive from the others. He turned baseball broadcasts into an art, which doesn’t seem to fit into the MLB Commissioner’s plan. The rumors about his departure were spread anonymously on social media, but were of a high-profile nature that usually doesn’t remain anonymous.
I investigated these rumors myself but could find no reputable sources to confirm them or connect them to his professional life, so they do not bear repeating. However, they served to justify his departure as something separate from MLB and even from SNY, at least in public opinion.
Nevertheless, it is interesting that the only creative broadcast in MLB, on one of the few networks that can show any resistance to Manfred’s plan, is no longer part of the industry at a time when Manfred is predicting he can package all the local broadcasts within only a few more seasons. The Wilpons, who own SNY, have long been known to Mets fans as enthusiastic supporters of the MLB corporate machine, even to the detriment of their own team, so it wouldn’t be surprising if the official reason had more truth to it than some unsubstantiated scandalous rumors. Mets spring training broadcasts so far look just like everyone else’s, but the official baseball season doesn’t start until March 25, 2026, so we’ll have to see what the regular season broadcasts look like.
No matter what the situation at SNY, the fact remains that baseball fans are in danger of having their teams being siloed behind yet another subscription service. Games that would have normally been available locally are going to be homogenized into a packaged blob, and there’s no guarantee the network they are sold to will be a TV network. The NBA, NFL, and Major League Soccer have already made similar moves, and now it looks like it’s going to be baseball’s turn before long, and MLB is already paving the way.
Entertainment
NYT Strands hints, answers for March 25, 2026
Today’s NYT Strands hints are easy if you frequent the movie theater.
Strands, the New York Times‘ elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There’s always a theme linking every solution, along with the “spangram,” a special, word or phrase that sums up that day’s theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.
By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.
If you’re feeling stuck or just don’t have 10 or more minutes to figure out today’s puzzle, we’ve got all the NYT Strands hints for today’s puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.
NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Intermission mission
The words are related to snacks.
Mashable Top Stories
Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained
These words describe things you buy at a theater.
NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?
Today’s NYT Strands spangram is vertical.
NYT Strands spangram answer today
Today’s spangram is Concessions.
NYT Strands word list for March 25
-
Fries
-
Popcorn
-
Soda
-
Beer
-
Concessions
-
Water
-
Candy
-
Pretzel
Looking for other daily online games? Mashable’s Games page has more hints, and if you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now!
Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Strands.
Entertainment
Wordle today: Answer, hints for March 25, 2026
Today’s Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you’re always learning.
If you just want to be told today’s word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today’s Wordle solution revealed. But if you’d rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
Where did Wordle come from?
Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once.
Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.
What’s the best Wordle starting word?
The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.
What happened to the Wordle archive?
The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website’s creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.
Is Wordle getting harder?
It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn’t any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle‘s Hard Mode if you’re after more of a challenge, though.
Here’s a subtle hint for today’s Wordle answer:
More knowledgeable.
Mashable Top Stories
Does today’s Wordle answer have a double letter?
There are no recurring letters.
Today’s Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with…
Today’s Wordle starts with the letter W.
The Wordle answer today is…
Get your last guesses in now, because it’s your final chance to solve today’s Wordle before we reveal the solution.
Drumroll please!
The solution to today’s Wordle is…
WISER
Don’t feel down if you didn’t manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we’ll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints. Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today’s Strands.
Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Wordle.
Entertainment
Hurdle hints and answers for March 25, 2026
If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.
There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it’ll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.
An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.
If you find yourself stuck at any step of today’s Hurdle, don’t worry! We have you covered.
Hurdle Word 1 hint
A woven hairstyle.
Hurdle Word 1 answer
BRAID
Hurdle Word 2 hint
An excursion.
Mashable Top Stories
Hurdle Word 2 Answer
JAUNT
Hurdle Word 3 hint
Shine.
Hurdle Word 3 answer
GLEAM
Hurdle Word 4 hint
Not height.
Hurdle Word 4 answer
WIDTH
Final Hurdle hint
Moon-related.
Hurdle Word 5 answer
LUNAR
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
NYT Strands hints, answers for March 25, 2026
Wordle today: Answer, hints for March 25, 2026
