Marcus Stevens/ESPN Images
An American sports tradition ended Sunday night, and unless you follow sports media, you might not have noticed.
ESPN aired what likely was its last “Sunday Night Baseball” broadcast. The Mariners-Astros game marked the end of a run that began April 15, 1990, with a Mets-Expos game. The Mariners and Astros were in different leagues back then, and the Expos are now the Nationals. A lot has changed in 36 years, and now baseball on Sunday nights will, too.
In February, commissioner Rob Manfred announced that MLB and ESPN had agreed to end their rights deal three years early, citing ESPN’s “demand to reduce rights fees.