ESPN has made a major broadcast schedule change for the MLB trade deadline which will see star host Laura Rutledge’s program bumped.
The network has added a show to analyze the MLB trade deadline, which is on Thursday, July 31.
ESPN airs NFL Live each weekday from 4:00 to 5:00 pm.
NFL Live, which is hosted by Rutludge, is regularly followed by a 30-minute live edition of SportsCenter from 5-5:30 pm ET and the hit program Pardon the Interruption from 5:30 to 6:00 pm ET.
But ESPN has elected to bump NFL Live from its TV schedule on Thursday, and instead added a MLB trade deadline special edition show of Baseball Tonight.
The program will be from 4:00 to 6:00 pm ET and cover the trade deadline, which commences at the time of the show ends.
Luckily for football fans, NFL Live will air on ESPN 2 from 4:00 to 5:00 pm ET.
Kevin Connors hosts Baseball Tonight and works alongside numerous analysts, including Xavier Scruggs, Doug Glanville, and Jessica Mendoza, among others, and insiders Jeff Passan and Buster Olney.
The program has been on the air since 1990.
It primarily airs on Sunday at 6:00 pm ET as a lead-in to Sunday Night Baseball.
Football fans will be in luck on Friday as NFL Live will return to its usual 4:00 pm ET slot on ESPN.
The program will cover NFL training camp and other news in the football world.
Rutledge has hosted the hit show since 2020.
She hosts alongside main analysts Dan Orlovsky, Mina Kimes, Marcus Spears, and Ryan Clark.
Back in February, Rutledge signed a multi-year extension to remain with the network.
The 36-year-old also hosts the college football program SEC Nation.
Rutledge hosts NFL Live alongside analyst Dan Orlovsky, middle[/caption]
And Rutledge will also have a bigger role as a sideline reporter for more marquee NFL and college football games, as well as big events like playoff events, the NFL Draft, and the Masters.
The former NFL quarterback Orlovsky also recently signed a multi-year extension to stick around with ESPN.
He is also a game analyst for Monday Night Football’s No. 2 broadcast team.
Orlovsky also contributes to First Take, SportsCenter, Get Up, and The Pat McAfee Show.
NFL important dates 2025 season
March 12 – Free Agency begins
April 24-26 – NFL Draft in Green Bay, Wisconsin
September 4 – 2025 season opener (TBC vs Eagles)
November 27 – Thanksgiving Day triple header
January 4, 2026 – End of regular-season
February 8, 2026 – Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California
