New York AG asks MLB and Apple to let more fans watch Yankees game

Sept 23 (Reuters) – New York Attorney General Letitia James has asked Major League Baseball and Apple to allow Friday’s Yankees game, in which Aaron Judge will look to tie the AL home run record, to be aired on the team-owned YES Network.

As it stands, the only way to watch the broadcast of the game against the visiting Boston Red Sox is on streaming service Apple TV+.

“History is in the making as Aaron Judge electrifies Yankees fans, and everyone who loves baseball,” James said in a release.

“To deny millions of New Yorkers, and fans around the nation, the opportunity to watch as Aaron Judge steps up to the plate, is wrong and unfair,” she said.

“That is why I am calling on Apple and the MLB to reach a fair accommodation with the YES Network so that fans can watch what we all hope will be history made this evening.”

YES primarily serves New York City and the surrounding areas.

An MLB spokesperson did not have any immediate comment on the request but in a news release this week about the Yankees broadcast schedule, MLB noted that “Friday Night Baseball” on Apple TV+ is free and available to anyone with internet access across devices where Apple TV+ can be found.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Judge hit his Major League-leading 60th home run on Tuesday, tying the mark set by Yankees great Babe Ruth, and is now one big swing shy of Roger Maris’s 61-year-old American League record for home runs in a single season.

Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles, editing by Ed Osmond

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