Fox Sports 1 will air an entire League Championship Series this year, a Fox Sports executive told Awful Announcing.
Fox Sports executive producer John Entz said in an interview with Awful Announcing that “the plan right now” if for Fox Sports 1 to televise an entire LCS this season. Under the current MLB television deal, which has just gone into effect, Fox Sports has the rights to one of the two LCS each season and the option to place games on FS1.
If FS1 does get a complete LCS, it is possible that not a single baseball playoff game will air on broadcast TV before the World Series. The Wild Card games will be split between ESPN and TBS, the Division Series will air on FS1, MLB Network, and TBS, and the other LCS will air on TBS.
It is still possible that FOX could air portions of the League Championship Series — or even the Division Series — but clearly the powers-that-be are focused more on Fox Sports 1 than FOX broadcast. The need to build up FS1, and to preserve the FOX primetime schedule, would seem to be more than adequate motivation. Already, the new TV deal calls for just 12 regular season telecasts on FOX, half the total of the previous deal.
(Thu. news from Awful Announcing)
