Baseball’s New Television Roster

The outlook wasn’t  brilliant for Rob Manfred and Major League Baseball when ESPN opted out of its $1.65 billion deal to televise baseball in February.

But after a spectacular season that had ratings jumping and fans buzzing, baseball is back in the money.

As expected, MLB announced a new round of media right deals with NBC, Netflix and, yes, ESPN.

These are three year deals. That gives MLB the ability to get all of its media rights deals–nataional and local– lined up after the current deals with Fox and Warner Bros Discover expire in 2028. Also  after a potential lock out following next season. Talk about no joy in Mudville.

Here’s the details of the new deals:

For $550 per year, ESPN gets rights to MLB.tv and out-of-market games for all 30 teams and six in-market clubs–the Guardians, Mariners, Twins, Padres, Diamondbacks and Rockies. It also gets a package of mid-week games ESPN can use baseball to boost its new ESPN streaming app. 

NBC and Peacock are paying about $200 million to get Sunday Night Baseball and the first round of the playoffs.

Netflix is paying $50 million for the opening day game in prime time, the Home Run Derby and the Field of Dreams game.

It adds up to almost as much as baseball was making before ESPN opted out, if you include the new MLB.tv situation. So mighty Manfred didn’t hit a grand slam, but he didn’t strike out either.

I’m wondering what Netflix plans to do with baseball on streaming. Baseball hasn’t exactly been setting the world on fire on Apple TV or Roku.

Will Netflix do what it did with F1 and the NFL, run a bunch of documentary series on players to boost the popularity of the game? I can see “The Catchers,” featuring the Big Dumper. Or a bio-pic on Shohei Ohtani.

Who is going to announce these games for these new networks? It’s a good time to be an agent. Can we bring back Lindsey Nelson and Kiner’s Korner. Or Harry Caray?

UNDER FOOT

There’s big money in sneakers and Steph Curry is looking to score.

I don’t know about you, but I remember playing in Chuck Taylors and watching Dr. J talk about Converse All-Star’s being “limousines for the feet.”

But the sneaker business really took off with Air Jordans. It’s gotta be the shoes!

With Michael Jordan, Nike dominated the basketball shoe market and much of the rest of the sporting goods world.

Then along came Under Armour. Under Armour was a hit in football and when it tried to fast-breaking into basketball, it signed a deal with Steph Curry in 2013.

The first Curry sneaker came out in 2015 and its done OK financially. The brand had estimated sales of more than $100 million this year, but that pales in comparison to the $7.6 billion the Jordan brand generates. And MJ’s been retired forever. 

The best-known Curry shoe was the infamous all- white low-top Curry 2 Chef, which was jeered as looking like the shoes nurses wear.They were also ridiculed as “dad shoes,” “the official shoe of the Cheesecake Factory.” People photoshopped them onto retirement home residents, added crying Jordan faces, set them to the Seinfeld theme song.

Needless to say, Under Armour was roasted for not getting “sneaker culture,” which was as much about style as on-the-court performance

Curry and Under Armour signed a new long term deal two years ago that included $75 million in stock. 

Under Armour's sales are down and it’s losing money and spending less on athletes while it tries to turn around. And the drop in UA’s stock price makes it easier for Curry to look for a new home. 

Now after 13 years, the greatest shooter ever is a free agent. He’s been seen warming up in NIkes before games, but still playing in Under Armour Currys.

One more Curry sneaker will be released by Under Armour in February and the world wonders where Curry will land. He owns the brand, which could be good golf and lifestyle, not just hoops.

Maybe Nike. Maybe Reebok. New Balance? Maybe he’s got a Starbury plan. Who knows.