Twins.TV, brought to you by Major League Baseball, will offer its first sample on Sunday

FORT MYERS, FLA. - The 2025 season will be Cory Provus’ 14th calling Twins games and his second from the TV booth. Yet Provus believes “a new era in Twins baseball” begins Sunday afternoon.

“It’s the inaugural Twins.TV broadcast, so it’ll have its own due introduction. It’s a big day,” Provus said. “I’m going to be saying, ‘Minnesota Twins baseball is presented by Major League Baseball.’ When we go to break, ‘You’re watching Twins.TV.’ ”

The difference may not be particularly noticeable to viewers, especially with Provus and Justin Morneau in the booth and Audra Martin on the field. But the method of delivery definitely will be.

After all the uncertainty that Twins viewers have endured over the past two years — bankruptcy by Bally Sports North’s parent company, the Twins’ unsuccessful hunt last year for another carrier, Comcast removing BSN’s channel during a contractual fight — Sunday’s game against the Red Sox marks the team’s first sign of real progress. It’s the first time that fans can stream games over the internet without paying a cable or satellite provider for that right.

“I mean, it’s how people watch programming now, and I’m thrilled we’re finally getting there. I’m not so ignorant to think there won’t be any bumps at the start, but it’s exciting,” Provus said. “When you go to your kids’ games, or when you’re not going to be at home, you can watch Twins games on your phone. And that’s a convenience we’ve wanted to deliver for a long time.”

Now for the inconvenience: Streaming Sunday’s game (free for those who have signed up for regular-season games) is the only way to watch Provus’ broadcast at the moment. MLB has yet to strike a deal with cable and satellite platforms like Comcast, Cox Communications, Spectrum TV, DirecTV and numerous small rural carriers to simulcast Twins.TV’s coverage.

MLB is handling those negotiations for the teams, like the Twins, that have left their regional sports network. The Twins remain “confident,” two sources with knowledge of the negotiations said, that those talks will be successful and the team will be able to announce what channel on each carrier will be dedicated to those broadcasts.

But that announcement might not come until the day before Opening Day.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a concern. There is some frustration out there, but we know that this is how cable companies work. This is not the Twins’ doing, the Twins’ fault — this is how negotiations with these companies normally go,” Provus said. “If you look back at last year, the Diamondbacks and Padres and Rockies, they didn’t know until very late. For the Rockies, it was the day before Opening Day. I hope I’m wrong, but that’s kind of what I’m expecting for us.”

Carriers have a history of drawing out negotiations right up to the last second, in order to increase their leverage and get the best deal possible. But as one source pointed out, live sports are particularly appealing and valuable to those platforms, so they have incentive to reach a deal, too.

In addition to assigning channels, the companies and MLB are negotiating whether to include Twins.TV on a special tier for an additional fee, as most carriers did last year.

“I remain confident,” Provus said, “that whatever provider you subscribed with last year to get our games, you’ll be able to do so again this year.”

The Twins are also hopeful that their carrier agreement includes a clause that allows them to sell a number of games, perhaps as many as 10 per season, to over-the-air broadcasters. The Wolves have a similar arrangement with KARE-11 in Minneapolis, “and we’re enthusiastic about it,” Provus said. “I believe there’s an audience for it, and we’d love to do that for our fans.”

For now, the Twins are planning several tweaks to their broadcasts, though most will not be visible Sunday (though third base coach Tommy Watkins will be miked up for an inning). A camera attached to the plate umpire is in the works, as well as a camera that moves down a baseline on a wire.

On March 24, Twins.TV will unveil the “Hot Corner,” a feature that the Diamondbacks debuted last season.

“There is this little chime, very subtle, and on the lower left of your screen will appear a fun note, stat or background on the player or situation or the game. It’s being built in conjunction with Sportradar,” a sports data analyst, Provus said, and will often be staffed by longtime Twins blogger Brandon Warne, among others. “It may happen once a game, it may happen five times. It seems to have a Pavlov’s dog kind of reaction to it — if you hear the little chime, you think, ‘Oh, this may be interesting.’ And you look at the screen to see what’s noteworthy.”

Just starting something new seems plenty noteworthy to Martin, who begins her 10th season as Twins sideline reporter.

“It’s always exciting to be part of a new chapter, and this is a new chapter for Twins baseball,” Martin said. “I’m looking forward to showing all our new elements, new ways to tell stories, better ways to inform and entertain. Honestly, I wish it was Opening Day.”