In the modern era of sports media, there are countless ways for fans to enjoy content across all sports, which serves as a roadblock for league-owned networks like the MLB Network. But despite this, MLB Network has continued to experience success in 2025, which longtime MLB Network host Robert Flores credits league owners, and the league as a whole for.
While there are certainly plenty of media pundits who are dubious of the long-term future of league-networks as a whole, MLB Network experienced one of its best months in recent memory in June.
MLB Network averaged 274,000 viewers across its 40 out-of-market game broadcasts in June, which is the highest average viewership for the network since June of 2019. The standout broadcast of the month came in a June 11 matchup between the New York Yankees and the Kansas City Royals, which averaged 551,000 viewers.
During a conversation with Austin Karp and Mollie Cahillane of Sports Business Journal on The Sports Media Podcast, Flores was asked why MLB Network has been among the most stable league-owned networks across the Big 4 sports leagues in the United States.
In the eyes of Robert Flores, it is a combination of support from league owners first and foremost, and a creative content strategy that sets the MLB Network apart from other league-owned networks.
“The support has to be there from the league and the owners,” said Flores. “And thankfully, we enjoy that. That’s where it starts. If you don’t have that, it makes it very, very difficult. And, you guys know, it is a challenging time across media. It’s in some ways an exciting time. But there is also a lot of uncertainty.
“The second reason we are successful is because we are constantly creating content. It’s not just the content that you see on the linear TV network. It’s on social, it’s on MLB.TV, it’s on a variety of streaming services. So, our place does a very good job of being creative and nimble and finding every way to be useful. Because, in this day and age, it is about creating content. And nobody is creating as much baseball content and as good of baseball content as we are.”
On an individual level, Flores has been a true staple at MLB Network since joining the network in 2016 as the host of MLB Central, which recently held its 1,000th episode.
Discussing the success of MLB Central, Flores detailed that he and his castmates, Lauren Shehadi and Mark DeRosa, have always had chemistry since coming together to form the show in 2018 and are quite close off camera.
“I think it’s a simple word, it’s chemistry,” said Flores. “Lauren Shehadi, Mark DeRosa, and myself, we enjoy being around each other. We are going to have a great time at the All-Star Game. Probably some of the biggest laughs we have will be at dinner or off the set. We enjoy being around each other, we respect each other. But the biggest thing that doesn’t get publicized enough is the work that is done behind the camera and behind the scenes.
“I have had the opportunity to be a part of the really cool shows. Be on some flagship shows and do some really cool things. But working on MLB Central has been one of the bright spots of my career. I have a great time. We are not on year round, we’re only on during the baseball season and hopefully through the postseason again this year. So, when the season ends, there is a little bit of sadness. And when the season begins, it’s almost like coming back from summer vacation and seeing your friends on that first day of school.”
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.