Whiplash moment in court today, as Anthony Crupi reports —
Speaking at a virtual hearing in front of Judge Christopher Lopez, Diamond counsel Andrew Goldman revealed that the owner of the Bally Sports-branded RSNs expects to cut ties with what amounts to eight MLB clubs, should it successfully emerge from bankruptcy.
“The debtors are assuming a single telecast agreement, that of the Atlanta Braves,” Goldman said, in a nod to an amended re-organization plan that had landed on the docket shortly before Wednesday’s hearing got underway. “All of Major League Baseball’s other agreements will be rejected under the plan.”
The following 8 teams would now be free to make their own broadcasting rights deals:
- St. Louis Cardinals
- Cincinnati Reds
- Detroit Tigers
- Kansas City Royals
- Los Angeles Angels
- Miami Marlins
- Milwaukee Brewers
- Tampa Bay Rays
This should now set into motion MLB’s long-sought after goal to stream all games whether viewers are in-market or not, thus eliminating the scourge that is the local blackout.
What remains to be seen is how this shakes up their existing MLB.tv streaming package.