The Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles have jointly announced that their long-standing dispute with the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN) has been resolved. The network released a statement Monday morning, confirming that both Nationals and Orioles games will continue to be broadcast on MASN, with the Nationals agreeing to a new one-year contract with the network.
Following the 2025 MLB season, the Washington Nationals will be free to explore alternative options for their television rights for the 2026 season and beyond. As part of the settlement between the three organizations, all further litigation and disputes have been agreed upon to be dismissed.
Both teams expressed their gratitude to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred for his role in facilitating the resolution.
The dispute dates back to 2005 when the Montreal Expos relocated to Washington, D.C. and became the Nationals. While MASN is technically co-owned by both the Orioles and Nationals, the Orioles have held the controlling stake in the network since its establishment in 2005.
Under the original agreement, Baltimore received approximately 90% of the profits from the media rights deal and controlled 77% of the network, while the Nationals received the remaining share. However, after multiple rounds of litigation over the past 20 years, the Orioles’ share of revenue from the rights agreement has decreased to nearly 67%, though they remain the majority owner of the network.
Since the Nationals’ relocation, they have been contractually barred from selling their broadcast rights to another regional network, as part of the agreement allowing them to move into a market already occupied by the Orioles. The two teams play their home games just 35 miles apart.
Baltimore Orioles games will continue to be exclusively televised by MASN.
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