No Cable, No Problem: Here’s How to Watch the World Series for Free
It’s that time of year again. Die-hard baseball fans are sitting at the edge of their seats waiting for the Houston Astros and the Los Angeles Dodgers to square off in the World Series.
Astros fans hope their team can bring the city, which is still reeling after Hurricane Harvey, its first MLB championship. Dodgers fans hope to follow the Chicago Cubs and end a streak that has kept a World Series win out of reach for about 30 years.
Baseball fans everywhere will be glued to their TVs.
Unless… you don’t have a TV. And what if you don’t have cable? Are you banned from baseball for the next two weeks?
Before you head to your local watering hole for four to seven nights of spending all your disposable income on Tater Tots, you may want to try this method of “free” sports streaming.
How to Find a Free World Series Livestream
Livestreaming service Sling TV offers a variety of broadcast and cable channels for rates ranging from $20 to $40 per month. In many areas, subscribers can also stream local broadcast affiliates like Fox, which is showing all the World Series games.
Sling also offers a free seven-day trial for new members.
Are you picking up what I am putting down? Tuesday, Oct. 24 would be a great time to start your free Sling trial. If the series runs for five games, you’re all set — just cancel your subscription after the final out.
If the series stretches to seven games, it gets tricky. You have to enter your credit card information to start your trial, so if your billing address is the same on all the credit cards in your wallet, you may get rejected from signing up for a second trial.
Sadly, it’s not as easy as using your second email address, [email protected], which you definitely have had for more than two days.
But there is another solution. YouTube TV, a streaming service for those who cut the cord but still want some live TV options, has partnered with the MLB to carry the World Series live.
YouTube TV costs $35 a month, but you can get a free seven-day trial.
While neither trial will last through all seven World Series games on their own, if it lasts that long, staggering the two will give you 14 days of free TV. That’s plenty of time to catch the whole series.
Sure, it’s complicated, but finding a World Series livestream is way cheaper than going to the bar every night.
Just don’t forget to cancel both subscriptions before the trials end. Otherwise, you could round out the World Series with a $75 bill.
Additional Options to Satisfy Your Baseball Craving on the Cheap
If you have a TV but lack cable, an antenna is all you need to pick up broadcast channels — including, of course, Fox. If you anticipate you’ll continue watching your local stations on occasion, you can pick up an antenna for as little as $15.
Just want access to baseball? All you need is $9.99 to get MLB.tv for the rest of the season, including live World Series coverage.
Meanwhile, if you already have a TV and a PlayStation 3 or 4, Amazon Fire device, Roku Streaming device or Google Chromecast, use your PlayStation Network account to sign up for a free five-day trial of PlayStation Vue.
Access to dozens of channels starts at $39.99 per month, but the free trial will grant you access to Fox. You’ll have the same challenge as Sling trial subscribers if the series goes beyond five games, but that’s what friends are for, right?
Lisa Rowan is a senior writer and producer at The Penny Hoarder. Baseball gives her heartburn, but she just can’t quit. Staff writer Desiree Stennett updated this post.
