FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, August 11th, 2022

JUAN SOTO RETURNS TO WASHINGTON AS PADRES VISIT NATIONALS ON MLB SUNDAY LEADOFF THIS SUNDAY, AUGUST 14 LIVE AT NOON ET ON PEACOCK; PREGAME BEGINS AT 11:30 A.M. ET ON PEACOCK

Kevin Frandsen (Nationals Analyst) and Mark Grant (Padres Analyst) Join Jason Benetti (Play-by-Play) in MLB Sunday Leadoff Booth

NBC Sports’ Ahmed Fareed Hosts Pregame Coverage on Peacock at 11:30 a.m. ET, Alongside Former MLB Player Cliff Floyd

STAMFORD, Conn. – Aug. 11, 2022 – Two-time All-Star outfielder Juan Soto, who was traded from the Nationals to the Padres last week ahead of the MLB trade deadline, makes his return to face his former team as San Diego visits Washington from Nationals Park on MLB Sunday Leadoff live this Sunday, August 14 at Noon ET on Peacock.

Soto spent his first four-plus big league seasons with the Nationals and helped the team win the 2019 World Series. While with Washington, Soto was a two-time All-Star (2021, 2022) and won the 2020 batting title with a .351 average. He finished second in rookie of the year voting in 2018 and finished second in National League MVP voting last season behind Bryce Harper. In the 2019 World Series, Soto batted .333 with three home runs and seven RBIs in the Nationals’ seven-game victory over Houston.

Play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti will be joined in this week’s MLB Sunday Leadoff booth by analysts Kevin Frandsen (Nationals analyst) and Mark Grant (Padres analyst). Benetti will be joined in the MLB Sunday Leadoff booth each week by local analysts from the participating teams.

Frandsen, a nine-year MLB veteran, spent one season with the Nationals in 2014. He currently serves as a Nationals analyst for MASN and returns to MLB Sunday Leadoff for the second time after serving as an analyst for the Phillies-Nationals game on June 19.

An eight-year MLB veteran as a pitcher, Grant spent parts of four seasons (1987-90) with San Diego and currently serves as a Padres analyst for Bally Sports San Diego.

This week’s MLB Sunday Leadoff coverage begins with the pregame show at 11:30 a.m. ET on Peacock. NBC Sports’ Ahmed Fareed is the pre- and postgame host of MLB Sunday Leadoff and also serves as the in-game reporter.

Cliff Floyd, a 17-year MLB veteran as an outfielder and first baseman, returns to MLB Sunday Leadoff for the fourth time this season and will serve as this week’s pre- and postgame analyst alongside Fareed. Floyd currently serves as an analyst on MLB Network and Sirius XM Radio and was previously an analyst on MLB Sunday Leadoff for the Mets-Marlins game on June 26, the Angels-Orioles game on July 10, and the Tigers-Blue Jays game on July 31. Rob Friedman, aka PitchingNinja, will also join the pregame show to provide pitching breakdowns.

How to Watch:

Date Show Time (ET) Platform
Sun., Aug. 14 MLB Sunday Leadoff Pregame 11:30 a.m. Peacock
Sun., Aug. 14 Padres vs. Nationals Noon Peacock

Commentators:

    • Play by Play: Jason Benetti
    • Analysts: Kevin Frandsen and Mark Grant
    • Pre- and Postgame Host/In-game Reporter: Ahmed Fareed
    • Pre- and Postgame Analyst: Cliff Floyd

 

Beginning Sunday, May 8 with the debut game of MLB Sunday Leadoff, Peacock will live stream an NBC Sports-produced baseball game for 18 consecutive weeks, with start times for the first six Sunday games at 11:30 a.m. ET and the following 12 Sunday games beginning at Noon ET. Each game will feature NBC Sports-produced pregame and post-game shows on Peacock.

On each of the 18 Sundays that Peacock presents a game, it will be scheduled as the exclusive home of live MLB action until 1:30 p.m. ET that day, when the remainder of the day’s schedule will begin. Peacock was also the exclusive home of the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game – featuring top minor league prospects – which was played during All-Star Week in July at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

For steps on how to watch MLB Sunday Leadoff on Peacock, click here.

Peacock’s expansive programming features live sports coverage including Triple Crown horse racing, golf, INDYCAR, the USFL, Sunday Night Football, Olympic sports, Premier League, Notre Dame Football, and much more. Peacock also offers daily sports programming on the NBC Sports channel which streams Peacock Original Brother from Another and staples like The Dan Patrick Show, Pro Football Talk Live, and The Rich Eisen Show.

2022 MLB Sunday Leadoff on Peacock Game Schedule

Date Time Matchup
August 14 Noon ET San Diego Padres at Washington Nationals
August 21 Noon ET Chicago White Sox at Cleveland Guardians
August 28 Noon ET Los Angeles Dodgers at Miami Marlins
September 4 Noon ET Toronto Blue Jays at Pittsburgh Pirates

 

— NBC SPORTS —