Radio voice of the Tampa Bay Rays Dave Wills has died. In other news, NBA commissioner Adam Silver is reportedly in the mix to replace Bob Iger at Disney; Scripps Sports’ president says the company is in talks with a number of teams and leagues; and more.
Rays radio voice Wills dies unexpectedly at 58
Tampa Bay Rays play-by-play voice Dave Wills has died at age 58, it was announced Sunday. Wills had been the voice of the Rays since 2005 and called a Spring Training game on Saturday, just hours before his death.
Prior to joining the Rays, Wills held multiple radio broadcasting roles in Chicago and for a time was part of the White Sox radio broadcast.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, Wills missed the final two weeks of last season due to a heart issue but had seemed to be “in good health and spirits” at Spring Training this year. (Tampa Bay Times 3.5)
Silver said to be contender to replace Iger at Disney
NBA commissioner Adam Silver is said to be among the contenders to eventually replace Bob Iger as Disney CEO, according to Fox Business and Front Office Sports. Silver has been NBA commissioner since 2014 and has a close relationship with Iger and Disney through the league’s partnership with ESPN.
Prior to becoming NBA commissioner, Silver was president of NBA Entertainment from 1997-05 and NBA deputy commissioner from 2006-14. (Fox Business 3.4)
Scripps Sports in talks with number of teams, leagues, per president
Scripps Sports president Brian Lawlor told Front Office Sports this past week that the company has had discussions with “close to a dozen” teams and “three or four” major leagues about potential rights deals. The talks have intensified in recent weeks and months due to the uncertainty regarding the Bally Sports RSNs and Scripps is positoning itself as a potential option should the Bally RSNs cease production in the coming weeks. (Diamond Sports, which operates the Bally RSNs, recently missed an interest payment on a multi-billion dollar debt and is expected to file for bankruptcy this month.)
Per Lawlor, teams have reached out to Scripps and not the other way around. (Front Office Sports 3.1)
Plus: ESPN streaming links, MLS 360, MSG+
ESPN is exploring whether to include links to sporting events aired by competing streaming services on its website and in its app, CNBC reported this week. Per the report, ESPN would take a cut of the revenue if someone signed up for a competing service through a link on its platforms. … The MLS whiparound show “MLS 360” is now available to Apple TV+ subscribers without having to purchase MLS Season Pass, per soccer writer Jonathan Tannenwald. … MSG announced Wednesday that it will launch a direct-to-subscriber platform called MSG+ that will cost $30/month or $310/year. (CNBC 3.2, Tannenwald/Twitter 3.3, MSG Network)
