A three-time Cy Young Award winner, a former MVP, and the first baseman who helped end a 108-year World Series drought are joining NBC Sports. How’s that for an All-Star lineup?
Recently retired stars Clayton Kershaw, Joey Votto, and Anthony Rizzo will provide their insight as MLB makes its return to NBC and Peacock for the 2026 season. The trio will serve as pregame analysts for the Wild Card round of the MLB playoffs this fall and will also appear on select Sunday Night Baseball broadcasts during the regular season alongside hosts Bob Costas and Ahmed Fareed.
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Beyond being three of the most recognizable players of their generation, Kershaw, Votto, and Rizzo have combined for 20 All-Star selections. They’ll draw on that experience to deliver informed analysis and fresh perspectives throughout NBC Sports’ MLB coverage.
Clayton Kershaw
Kershaw completed his 18th and final season in 2025 by winning his third World Series title with the Los Angeles Dodgers. One of the most dominant pitchers of his generation, Kershaw posted a 223-96 career record for a .699 winning percentage – third best in MLB history (minimum 100 decisions). A left-hander, he recorded more than 3,000 career strikeouts, was an 11-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner and National League Most Valuable Player in 2014, a year in which he pitched a no-hitter. In addition, the Dallas native led the NL in earned run average five times and in wins and strikeouts three times. In 2012, Kershaw earned MLB’s Roberto Clemente Award, which is regarded as MLB’s most prestigious individual honor for a player who exhibits exemplary community service, for his charitable work, which included building an orphanage with his wife, Ellen, in Africa.
Joey Votto
Votto spent 17 years with the Cincinnati Reds, with whom he was a six-time All-Star, the 2010 NL Most Valuable Player and 2011 Gold Glove first baseman. Known for his power and patience, the left-handed hitter compiled a .294 career batting average and blasted 356 career home runs while leading the NL in on-base percentage seven times. He helped the Reds reach the Postseason four times in his career. Votto, a native of Toronto, also turned in numerous memorable interviews and mic’d up moments as a player, becoming a fan favorite across the game.
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Anthony Rizzo
Rizzo is a three-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove-winning first baseman who is perhaps best known for catching the final out of the 2016 World Series for the Chicago Cubs, breaking the team’s 108-year championship drought. Rizzo also hit .360 in that World Series. In 2016, Rizzo was awarded the Platinum Glove as the NL’s best overall defensive player. Over 14 seasons with the Padres, Cubs and Yankees, the lefty slugger hit 303 home runs and had four seasons with at least 100 RBIs. A survivor of Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the Florida native was the 2017 recipient of the Clemente Award for the work of the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, which benefits cancer research and families affected by the disease.
MLB: World Series-Los Angeles Dodgers at Toronto Blue Jays
MLB Returns to NBC and Peacock in 2026: Full schedule announced
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From an MLB Opening Day doubleheader on March 26 to the Wild Card round of the playoffs, NBC Sports’ 2026 schedule delivers wall-to-wall coverage.
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When does MLB on NBC coverage begin?
MLB on NBC coverage will begin with an Opening Day doubleheader on March 26, as Paul Skenes and the Pirates will take on Juan Soto and the Mets before the World Series champion Dodgers will raise their banner leading into a primetime matchup against Ketel Marte and the Diamondbacks.
As part of a three-year media rights agreement, MLB will be presented across NBC, NBCSN, and Peacock. Sunday Night Baseball will debut on March 29 with a matchup between two 2025 first-place teams, as the Mariners host the Guardians. The 18-game MLB Sunday Leadoff schedule begins May 3, with the defending AL champion Toronto Blue Jays visiting the Twins in Minnesota. On Sunday, July 5, all 15 MLB games will be presented nationally across Peacock and NBC as part of a special all-day “Star-Spangled Sunday” showcase.
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Viewers can also look forward to a weekly Sunday whip-around show, a Labor Day special, the MLB Draft, the All-Star Futures Game, as well as highlights, short-form content, and documentaries.
Telemundo Deportes will present all NBCUniversal-produced MLB games in Spanish, with Universo televising all games broadcast on NBC.
