Most Mets games are on SportsNet New York, but a lot of the weekend games are on channel 11 (WPIX), so EI customers don't get them anyway, unless the other team is on their local cable system.
There used to be a time when NESN had all Red Sox games, but some were shown on free TV (channel 38, can't remember the call letters). That's gone by the wayside now too, and if you don't get NESN you don't get the Sox.
All I know is that, while I do recognize that we are a capitalist country and that a business has a right to do what it wants to make a profit, I also know that this is cutting off their nose to spite their face. I am a long-time customer, and they are telling me to take a hike. You can't piss off good customers like this and not suffer at some point.