Hi. I've got a 'friend' who has this problem with regards to watching local baseball games over the internet. See, he doesn't have cable TV and instead, he has the MLB.com video packages so he can watch his favorite out-of-town baseball team on his computer.

The problem is that whenever his favorite out-of-town team plays the local team, he cannot watch those games because the local cable provider has a monopoly on the games and therefore they are blacked out on his MLB.com service.

Does this make sense?

It's not a terrible problem for him, since he can still listen to the game on his MLB.com audio package, but he really wants to watch his team play the local team. Really badly.

So, his question is: Does anybody know a way where he can mask his IP address so that it tricks MLB.com into thinking that he is living on the other side of the country? Even just a few states away? Someplace where the local sports channel doesn't broadcast. Is this a really complicated thing to do? Because he really sucks at computers.

Thanks.

(My friend is really me, by the way. I want to watch the Yankees game. It's me! [Dark Helmet voice]: "Fooled you!")

Land sakes alive, the steak's alive.

Sounds to me like your friend needs to buddy up to the guys that post at piratebay dot com

Sounds to me like your friend should just move back to connecticut.

Nevermind. I don't want to watch it anymore.

Land sakes alive, the steak's alive.

yeah. I'm watching with a couple of pissed off yankee fans right now. I brought a nice mason jar too.

Ewww...nobody wants old person tears. You gotta collect from the young ones. Don't you know anything about being nefarious?

Land sakes alive, the steak's alive.

Sweetheart like me? Of course I don't.

And who exactly who do you think i'm hanging out with? Rudy guiliani and jack nicholson?

Jeff and Melissa.

Land sakes alive, the steak's alive.

Since this is a baseball thread and isn't really going anywhere in particular, I figured I'd share this little story.

The announcers just mentioned Brien Taylor because of the recent MLB draft. I remembered that name from way back in the day, so I binged him to see what ever happened to him.

For those that didn't know, Brein Taylor was a Yankees first round draft pick back in 1991. He was supposed to be 'the next big thing'. Yanks gave him $1.55 million right out of high school.

So, he signs with the Yanks and pitches in their minor league farm system. Everything was going well until one day he got into a bar fight with his brother and he got hurt. After that injury, he never pitched the same again and he never wound up making it to the major leagues.

Here's what wikipedia says about him as of 2006: As of July 14, 2006, Taylor lays bricks for a living working with his father. According to financial records filed in a child support application, he makes $909 per month. He is the father of five daughters. Taylor still lives with his parents, at the end of a street named after him, in a two-story brick and frame house that he built using his signing bonus.

Land sakes alive, the steak's alive.

Dr. Z,

A paid-for proxy is your only way to go. NONE of the free ones work. If you're willing to shell out $10 a month for a proxy - get one stationed in the UK. MLB games are blacked out in the US, Canada, and "Asia." I don't know what countries fall into that category, so just avoid them.

There are no blackouts in the UK. You can watch every game, blacked out or not - on MLB.tv over there. If it's an ESPN broadcast, they'll just show that broadcast online.

Edit for confusion: Free proxies work but they're not fast enough for MLB.tv.