You pay in the first instance by way of constant commercial interruptions. (And if you wait and DVR it to remove the commercials, it's not really comparable to a live game you can visit in person anymore)
Have you been to a baseball game lately? Ads are everywhere.
Anyway, when I can, I watch baseball on the MLB streaming service where there are very few ads. Usually, they just blank out the screen during the commercial time which is almost as annoying.
I can watch baseball for free on television or I can go to the ballpark and pay to see it in person.