If you’ve tried to find the game recently and ended up staring at a blank screen or a "channel not found" error, you aren't alone. Honestly, keeping up with the bally sports midwest schedule has become a part-time job for fans in St. Louis and across the Midwest. Between the corporate bankruptcies, the sudden name changes, and the shifting rights for the Cardinals, it is a total mess.
Here is the big headline: Bally Sports Midwest basically doesn't exist anymore under that name. As of late 2024 and moving into this 2026 season, the network rebranded to FanDuel Sports Network Midwest. But even that name is currently on shaky ground for baseball fans.
Let's break down exactly where your teams are playing and how the 2026 schedule is actually going to look.
The St. Louis Cardinals 2026 Schedule Chaos
For years, the Cardinals were the crown jewel of the Bally Sports Midwest schedule. But 2026 is the year the cord finally cut. In early January 2026, news broke that the Cardinals officially terminated their contract with Diamond Sports Group (the parent company of FanDuel Sports Network). This happened after the network reportedly missed payments to the team in December 2025.
So, what does this mean for the 2026 season?
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The Cardinals are set to open their season on Thursday, March 26, 2026, at home against the Tampa Bay Rays. If you are looking for that game on your old Bally channel, you might be disappointed. Major League Baseball (MLB) is expected to take over the production and distribution of Cardinals games for the 2026 season, similar to what they did for the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Diego Padres recently.
While the "Bally" branding is gone, the games will still be on TV. Commissioner Rob Manfred has been very vocal that fans in the St. Louis market will have a way to watch. Most likely, this will involve a new "MLB Local" channel on your cable provider or a direct-to-consumer streaming package via MLB.TV without those annoying blackouts.
Key Series to Circle (If you can find the channel):
- Opening Day: March 26 vs. Tampa Bay Rays.
- The I-70 Series: May 15–17 vs. Kansas City Royals.
- Cubs at Busch: May 29–31 and July 27–30.
- The Finale: Sept 25–27 vs. Milwaukee Brewers.
St. Louis Blues: Business as Usual (Sorta)
Unlike the Cardinals, the St. Louis Blues are still very much tied to the FanDuel Sports Network (the artist formerly known as Bally). If you’re looking for the bally sports midwest schedule for the remainder of the 2025-2026 NHL season, you’re looking for FanDuel Sports Network Midwest.
They are slated to broadcast 68 of the 82 regular-season games. The rest are swallowed up by national broadcasts on TNT, ESPN, and Hulu.
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The schedule for the back half of the 2026 season is brutal but essential viewing. You’ve got the Blues fighting for playoff positioning with a heavy home stretch in March.
Upcoming Blues Matchups on FanDuel Sports Network Midwest:
- January 24: vs. Los Angeles Kings (7 p.m. CT)
- January 27: vs. Dallas Stars (7 p.m. CT)
- March 10: vs. New York Islanders (6:30 p.m. CT)
- March 24: vs. Washington Capitals (7 p.m. CT)
- April 13: vs. Minnesota Wild (7 p.m. CT)
The April 14th game against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins is a national exclusive on ESPN, so don't go looking for it on your local regional sports network (RSN).
What Happened to the Pacers and Other Teams?
If you are in the overlapping regions of Indiana or Mid-Missouri, you might also be looking for the Indiana Pacers. Like the Blues, the Pacers stayed the course with the FanDuel rebrand. They are currently in their 30th season with this RSN partner, broadcasting 72 games this year.
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The Pacers schedule is currently dominated by Eastern Conference clashes. If you have the FanDuel Sports Network app, you can stream these games, but the "Bally Sports+" subscription you might have had is now officially a FanDuel Sports Network Season Pass. It’ll cost you about $108.99 for the season if you’re buying it standalone.
How to Actually Watch in 2026
The biggest frustration for fans isn't just when the games are, but where. Because the bally sports midwest schedule has splintered, you need a multi-pronged approach.
- For the Blues and Pacers: You can still use traditional cable like Charter Spectrum or satellite like DIRECTV. Fubo is still the main streaming "cable replacement" that carries these regional networks.
- For the Cardinals: This is the "wait and see" zone. If MLB produces the games, you will likely see a new channel pop up on Spectrum and DIRECTV specifically for Cardinals baseball.
- The App Situation: The Bally Sports app is dead. Long live the FanDuel Sports Network app. You use the same login you used before. If you were a subscriber, your account should have migrated automatically.
Why the Schedule Keeps Changing
Regional sports networks are in a "death spiral," to put it bluntly. The model of charging every cable subscriber $5 a month for a sports channel they might not watch is over. Diamond Sports Group's bankruptcy is the reason the "Bally" name was stripped off the buildings and replaced by a sportsbook name.
When you look at the bally sports midwest schedule today, you're seeing the final breaths of a 30-year-old business model. The Cardinals leaving the network to go with MLB is a massive shift. It means the team thinks they can make more money—or at least reach more fans—by controlled their own broadcast rather than relying on a struggling middleman.
Actionable Steps for Fans:
- Check your provider: If you have Spectrum or DIRECTV, look for a notification about "Cardinals Programming" or "MLB Local."
- Download the new app: Get rid of the Bally app. Download the FanDuel Sports Network app and log in with your provider credentials to keep watching the Blues.
- Cancel the "Plus" subscription if you only watch baseball: If you were paying for the Bally Sports+ standalone stream specifically for the Cardinals, you should probably cancel it. That service likely won't have Cardinals games in 2026 if the contract termination holds.
- Watch the "Free" Friday games: Keep an eye on local St. Louis stations like KMOV. They have picked up several "Friday Night" games for the 2026 season to ensure over-the-air access for fans without cable.
The 2026 season is going to be a year of transition. It's annoying, it's confusing, and it's definitely more expensive than it used to be. But the games are still happening—you just have to know which remote to pick up.