MLB.com Plays Ball on the iPhone

There's nothing quite like the collective roar of the crowd, the breeze blowing across the stadium and the echoing crack of the bat that punctuates the live baseball experience. But those of us who can no longer afford to subsidize the overpaid boys of summer can at least watch them on our smartphones. At a cost, of course.

Beginning today, die-hard baseball fans can stream live Major League Baseball games on their iPhones via a partnership with MLB.com. The application runs on Apple's latest version of the iPhone and costs $9.99 for two games per day, selected by MLB. Not all games will be streamed, at least not right away, and the first iPhone-streamed game is today's intraleague duel between the Chicago White Sox and the Chicago Cubs.

Eventually, MLB.com will offer all of its games for live streaming and may require additional fees for watching only particular games, according to the New York Times article linked above.

While this may be a great way to keep up with your favorite team, baseball is one of those games best watched with friends and family and not necessarily made for small screens. Besides, what's baseball without guzzling overpriced beer and ducking the occasional foul ball?