Twins, Rangers, Guardians future in limbo as Diamond Sports bankruptcy hearing postponed: Source

A bankruptcy hearing Wednesday afternoon that could have brought some clarity around which MLB teams will be seen on Bally regional sports networks this season has been pushed back 10 days, according to a court filing Tuesday night. The delay appears a signal that the sides believe they have a chance to reach a deal on their own, if allowed extra time. But it also keeps three teams in particular — the Cleveland Guardians, Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins — in a state of wondering about their TV revenue as free agency continues to unfold.

Diamond Sports, which has filed for bankruptcy, holds the rights to 11 MLB teams’ TV broadcasts in 2024 via its Bally-branded RSNs. MLB has asked the court to push Diamond to make decisions about which teams it will carry in 2024, and the sides have been negotiating a potentially mutually acceptable arrangement via a mediator.

The talks have focused on three teams, per testimony in court. Two are the World Series champion Rangers and the Guardians, teams that Diamond intends to continue broadcasting in 2024 only on revised terms.

The third team, people briefed on the proceedings said, is a club that Diamond previously broadcast, but technically does not have the rights to at the moment: the Twins. The Twins’ deal with Diamond expired following last season, but a new and revised arrangement has been under negotiation.

If Diamond carries the Twins again in 2024 and Diamond sheds no other MLB teams, Diamond’s count of MLB teams would rise back to 12. Diamond started the 2023 season with the rights to 14 clubs, before dropping the Padres and Diamondbacks midway through the year. That’s the scenario MLB and the teams are trying to avoid this year.

The other nine MLB teams that Diamond holds the rights to are the Los Angeles Angels, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays, Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers.

As of now, Diamond intends to operate through 2024. Whether it continues in some form beyond 2024 isn’t yet known.

Amazon, which owns a prominent streaming service, has shown interest in investing in Diamond, but Diamond holds only five MLB teams’ digital streaming rights: the Brewers’, Marlins’, Rays’, Royals’ and Tigers’. MLB and Diamond have long been at odds over the value of various MLB teams’ digital rights, and MLB would rather deal directly with Amazon than give Diamond increased digital rights in the long term, people briefed on the talks said. The New York Post reported Monday that MLB told Amazon that if it wants additional digital rights, such a deal would have to come directly with MLB.

The rescheduled hearing is set for the morning of Jan. 19 in Houston.