Data MCP: local scaffold

The data MCP scaffold lets an AI assistant fetch TheRundown Product API data through five read-only tools. Run it locally with Node.js 22+ and your own API key. Your plan’s data delay, coverage, entitlements, and data-point billing still apply.

This is a source example, not a hosted data MCP service or a published npm package. The existing documentation MCP at https://docs.therundown.io/mcp searches documentation only.

Install from source

Download the versioned source bundle, extract it locally, and install the locked dependencies. The archive includes the server, dependency lockfile, design, and offline tests; no GitHub repository access is required:

cd /absolute/path/to/therundown-data-mcp-0.1.2
npm ci --ignore-scripts
npm test

The server uses the official MCP SDK over stdio. It exposes no listening HTTP port. Keep the process environment and local client configuration private. To check the download before extracting it, download its SHA-256 checksum into the same directory and run sha256sum -c therundown-data-mcp-0.1.2.sha256 (Linux) or shasum -a 256 -c therundown-data-mcp-0.1.2.sha256 (macOS). The archive also contains SOURCE.json with the source revision and individual file hashes.

Connect an MCP client

Replace both paths below with the absolute Node.js 22+ executable and extracted server.mjs. An absolute Node path also works when a desktop app does not inherit your terminal’s Node version. Keep real keys in private local configuration or the client’s supported secret/environment mechanism.

Claude Desktop

Use this entry in claude_desktop_config.json, then restart Claude Desktop. This source ZIP is not a .mcpb desktop extension. See the official local-server configuration guide.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "therundown-data": {
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/therundown-data-mcp-0.1.2/server.mjs"],
      "env": {
        "THERUNDOWN_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Cursor

Add this entry to the global ~/.cursor/mcp.json. Make THERUNDOWN_API_KEY available in the environment that launches Cursor, then reload its MCP servers. The environment reference keeps the key value out of the JSON. See Cursor’s MCP instructions.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "therundown-data": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/node",
      "args": ["/absolute/path/to/therundown-data-mcp-0.1.2/server.mjs"],
      "env": {
        "THERUNDOWN_API_KEY": "${env:THERUNDOWN_API_KEY}"
      }
    }
  }
}

The server reads THERUNDOWN_API_KEY from its environment and sends it to the Product API in X-TheRundown-Key. Tool arguments never accept credentials, arbitrary URLs, or custom headers. Never commit a client configuration containing a real key.

Tools

Tool	Input	Result
`list_sports`	None	Canonical sport IDs and names.
`list_affiliates`	None	Currently published source IDs, names, and API integration status. Retired affiliate 27 is excluded.
`list_markets`	Optional `sport_id`, `live`, `page`, `limit`	Market definitions, period IDs, and `live_variant_id`.
`list_events`	`sport_id`, `date`; optional filters, offset, and pagination	Event IDs, teams, score, date, and available market IDs.
`get_main_lines`	`event_id`; optional filters and pagination	Open main-line prices with participant, affiliate, line value, and `updated_at`.

Both event tools default to market_ids: [1, 2, 3] and affiliate_ids: [19, 23] (DraftKings and FanDuel). They always request main_line=true&hide_closed=true&include=all_periods. Pass live IDs 41,42,43 explicitly for in-play moneyline, spread, and total. Discover other markets instead of guessing IDs. The scaffold accepts at most 12 market IDs and 10 affiliate IDs per call. Pages contain at most 200 items; the default is 50. Pagination is local: another page fetches another full filtered API response, incurs its normal usage, and may reflect a newer snapshot. Reduce upstream market/book filters to reduce billing; lowering the page size only reduces the tool output.

First conversation

Use TheRundown to list current sports and affiliates. Find MLB (sport 3).
For today's UTC date, list events with market_ids [1,2,3]
and affiliate_ids [19,23]. Select an event ID from that response and
call get_main_lines with the same filters.
Show the source URL, each book's line value and price updated_at,
and the returned usage headers. Explain empty results without inventing odds.

Results carry source_url, retrieved_at, usage, and data. retrieved_at is the HTTP retrieval time, not the freshness of an individual price. Use the price’s updated_at and your key’s delay entitlement. A sport or affiliate catalog entry does not guarantee an open offer for a particular event.

Verify a real request

After setting THERUNDOWN_API_KEY privately in your environment, run:

npm run smoke

This opt-in check makes metered requests. Ordinary npm test is offline. By default, the smoke check uses MLB, DraftKings/FanDuel, and pre-match markets 1,2,3, so it does not request live access on a Free key. Free covers pre-match odds from three listed books with a five-minute delay; it excludes live odds, props/alternates, and history. Check current entitlements for your key. With an eligible key, explicitly include live markets 41,42,43:

THERUNDOWN_SMOKE_LIVE=1 npm run smoke

Require status: "ok", tools: 5, and positive events and main_lines counts. The script verifies the exact five tool names before making data requests, selects an event whose summary reports a requested market ID, spaces its two Product API calls by one second for Free-plan compatibility, and reports its UTC check time, sport/date/affiliate/market scope, selected event ID, source URLs, and usage. An empty result is inconclusive and exits with status 2; set THERUNDOWN_SMOKE_DATE=YYYY-MM-DD to select a known active date. The script has a 60-second deadline. A positive response is a snapshot check, not a latency or all-source coverage benchmark.

Limits and next steps

The scaffold allows one in-flight API call, uses a 15-second timeout and a 4 MiB upstream response limit, rejects redirects, and never retries automatically. On 429, follow the returned retry_after and usage headers. API errors are sanitized before reaching the assistant. It provides REST snapshots. Streaming, bet placement, account changes, hosted OAuth, package publication, and directory listings are outside this example. Read the design and release criteria before operating a shared service. For a pasteable API integration brief, see Build with AI. For the underlying contracts, use the OpenAPI specification, authentication guide, and market reference.

Getting Started

Reference Tables

Install from source

Connect an MCP client

Claude Desktop

Cursor

Tools

First conversation

Verify a real request

Limits and next steps

​Install from source

​Connect an MCP client

​Claude Desktop

​Cursor

​Tools

​First conversation

​Verify a real request

​Limits and next steps

Install from source

Connect an MCP client

Claude Desktop

Cursor

Tools

First conversation

Verify a real request

Limits and next steps