Six MLB teams ditch Main Street Sports for MLB-produced broadcasts. The struggling network faces further collapse as teams seek new broadcast futures.
The demise of soon-to-be-bankrupt Main Street Sports, a regional sports TV network that's been serving pro sports markets across the country, lost six more Major League Baseball teams on Tuesday. The St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Tampa Bay Rays, Miami, Marlins, Kansas City Royals are Milwaukee Brewers are leaving to have MLB produce its local broadcats.
The move was first reported by Puck's John Ourand. Three other MLB teams — the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels and Detroit Tigers — also have been part of Main Street Sports' portfolio, but they have not officially announced any plans as so Tuesday morning. A report from Sports Business Journal said the Angels and Tigers will also join MLB.
The Braves have said they are "well on our way towards launching a new era in Braves broadcasting," adding that they will be "sharing our path forward in the coming weeks."
Here's the story on the Miami Marlins' move away from FanDuel by Marlins Roundtable writer Joe Smeltzer.
All nine of Main Street Sports' baseball teams terminated their contracts on Jan. 8 as the company scrambled to find a buyer while in the midst of serious financial issues. Just one year out of lengthy bankruptcy proceedings, the teams gave Main Street time to fix its woes, but with spring training now just a few weeks away, they left en masse.
The MLB departures could be a death knell for the RSN, though previous reports have said that they will continue to operate NBA and NHL broadcasts through the end of their current seasons.
Main Street operates under the name FanDuel Sports, and they began the year with 29 NBA, NHL and MLB teams in its portfolio.
"FanDuel Sports Network is continuing to broadcast NBA and NHL games, and we appreciate the leagues' engagement in ongoing discussions on our go-forward plans," a spokesperson for Main Street Sports wrote in a statement. "We appreciate the relationships we have had with these MLB partners and their fans over many years, and we wish them the best."
MLB 's future plans are to own local rights for all 30 teams by the end of 2028 and sell them as a national package, a process that would help to eliminate blackouts. MLB already has local TV rights for the Arizona Diamondback, San Diego Padres, Cleveland Guards, Colorado Rockies, Minnesota Twins, Seattle Mariners and Washington Nationals.
Sports business insider Maury Brown of Forbes was a guest on Roundtable's ''Refuse to Lose'' podcast and discussed what it's like in the regional TV market these days.
