News: MLB deals, ESPN/Tee Higgins, Fox cuts

ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 09: A baseball on the field prior to the fifth and final game of the National League Division Series between the Atlanta Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals on October 9, 2019 at Suntrust Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire)

Major League Baseball is reportedly planning to resume media rights talks with ESPN and Turner this week. Also: ESPN is apologizing for a controversial graphic about Tee Higgins’ mother during its NFL Draft coverage; Fox Sports talent is taking pay cuts.

MLB looking to resume talks with ESPN, Turner, this week

Major League Baseball plans to resume media rights talks with partners ESPN and Turner Sports as soon as this week, according to Sports Business Journal. The sides had begun talks earlier this year, but those have been on a pandemic-related pause.

Per the report, both ESPN and Turner want to renew their deals and MLB seems willing. Notably, ESPN is said to be happy with Sunday Night Baseball and interested in rights for ESPN+, but less so with its package of midweek games.

MLB last year renewed its deal with Fox Sports through 2028. [SBJ 4.27]

ESPN sorry for noting draftee’s mother’s drug battle on graphic

ESPN VP/production Seth Markman has apologized for the network including information about a draftee’s mother’s drug addiction on a graphic during Friday’s NFL Draft coverage. In a conversation with The Athletic on Monday, he said the story “shouldn’t have been used in the graphic. In hindsight, that was a mistake. … You can’t give it the proper context, even though our announcers tried to.”

The draftee in question, Clemson and incoming Bengals WR Tee Higgins, said on social media Saturday that he had “no problem showing the world that my mom is a true fighter.” [The Athletic 4.27, Higgins/Twitter 4.25]

Fox talent taking pay cuts

Fox Sports on-air talent have agreed to temporary 15 percent pay cuts, The Wall Street Journal reported last Thursday. ESPN’s highest-paid talent agreed to similar cuts earlier this month. In addition to talent, executives at Fox Corporation are taking 50 percent pay cuts, including Fox Sports CEO Erik Shanks. [WSJ 4.23, Variety 4.23]

SBJ: NFL making schedule with contingency plans in mind

Jon Lewis

Jon Lewis has been covering the sports media industry on a daily basis since 2006 as the founder and main writer of Sports Media Watch. You can contact him here or on the social media websites X (Twitter) or Bluesky.

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Comments 13

Sam Rosem says:

6 years ago

I would like to see ESPN add some MLB games over to ABC it’d be nice to see a second broadcast network start airing games again outside of FOX. I was hoping in the next TV deals before FOX finalized this most recent one that the World Series would rotate on two networks every other year sort of like the Super Bowl. That’s something I’m still holding out hope for on the new NHL and NBA deals that are coming up.

ESPN should put some on ABC Saturdays and bring back the Game of the Week, it shouldn’t interrupt FOX’s window since that’s later in the day just take the 1pm timeslot and maybe a couple of games end up in primetime on ABC. Then during the postseason once ESPN can put some of those games on ABC so that over the air viewers can see the games before the World Series.
Dale Moog says:

6 years ago

ESPN will keep the Sunday night games. They will look to get more playoff games and keep the ESPN+ games. They would maybe like to get some early season Sunday day games or maybe some games for ABC Saturday or Sunday in the Summer. They would be willing to give up the Monday and Wednesday games. Look for more games on Youtube Twitter and Facebook. They may even sell more rights to Amazon who was going to stream some Yankees games this year. As for TBS they will keep the Sunday games second half of the season. and some playoff games. I could see FS1 get more mid week games and Maybe CBS Sports Network or NBCSN getting a limited package of mid week games. I think you could have 1 or two national games a day if you did it right it might look like this (Normal NON holiday week) Monday ESPN, Tuesday FS1, Wednesday MLB (afternoon) Wednesday night ESPN, Thursday MLB, Thursday night CBS Sports Network or NBCSN Friday Night MLB Saturday afternoon (early) MLB Late FS1/Fox, Primetime FS1/FOX and Late night (west coast) MLB, Sunday ESPN/ABC until July and TBS July though September Sunday night ESPN. MLB could also show all Cubs Friday home games and any early start 11 am games like July 4th in DC and Patriots day in Boston. Plus Holiday games and opening day and opening Monday would be on ESPN and MLB. The major change here is adding Thursday night for CBS Sports Network April though June and NBCSN July Though September and FS1 on Tuesdays plus giving ESPN Sunday games replacing the MLB network games early season. These could be on ESPN or ABC most on ESPN because of NBA playoffs
Samuel says:

6 years ago

So which network would get the Monday/Wednesday games if ESPN lets them go? Would FS1 get them, TBS or someone else stepping in like CBS or NBC?
- Paulsen says:
  
  6 years ago
  
  I doubt those games would leave ESPN, but maybe MLB could get creative and do something with a digital outlet. Who knows. I don’t think TBS would want them.
  - Eddie says:
    
    6 years ago
    
    Here’s the news come from if it’s possible to bid?
    the New York Post reported that ESPN and ABC were expected to make a big push for the playoff broadcast rights currently held by Turner once their deal expires after the 2021 season, with CBS and NBC also expected to hold talks.[
  - Tim says:
    
    6 years ago
    
    TBS gets better ratings on weeknights with cheaper programming that costs less and draws a young audience. So no. TBS wants baseball so they can charge it in carriage fees.
Eddie says:

6 years ago

So who going to win MLB tv Deal of 2022 and beyond?
I think ESPN and ABC are going to win the rights?
- Paulsen says:
  
  6 years ago
  
  MLB will probably stay with its current partners, FOX (deal already done), ESPN and Turner.
  - Eddie says:
    
    6 years ago
    
    They say that ESPN could get of half turner sports mlb package of postseason to espn after 2021.
    - Paulsen says:
      
      6 years ago
      
      I could see that happening, but I would lean toward both ESPN and Turner staying in the mix.
  - Eslrush says:
    
    6 years ago
    
    Do you think MLB will want to continue with a turner? They have to be disappointed with their coverage and promotion of the game?
    - Paulsen says:
      
      6 years ago
      
      All about the money, so if Turner wants to pay, MLB will be happy to stay.
Nate Johnson says:

6 years ago

To be honest, I believe from the public standpoint the Tee Higgins’ mother battle with drug addiction being displayed wasn’t an issue. I believe the issue was that Tee Higgins never mentioned it verbally prior to the Draft which come out as ESPN trying to sour a player sweet moment or the NFL letting the public know they care so much about life that they’ll reveal players being drafted personal tragedies. Had Higgins said something like this on a podcast or on a media platform then it wouldn’t be a problem for ESPN to remind viewers what he said he went through. We may never know whether ESPN was given permission from draft prospects to let the world know what their personal challenges has been. I believe all of them do though just because there’s plenty of humble beginning stories out there and so many people want to relate to that.

So why ESPN apologized? A majority of people don’t want to hear stories like that especially if it’s the first time. I cringed when Trey Wingo was about to express a challenge in the player’s life before letting Mel Kiper give his thoughts on the selection. The reason is because we’re going through a lot in this country at the moment and the draft was something to not only be away from the real world for about 4 hours, but to also look ahead to something which is Football season. It was a moment to celebrate and have hope. Hearing the player’s tragedy stories kind of dampens the virtual event. Luckily on the ABC coverage when I saw either Maria Taylor or Tom Rinaldi on the screen, I knew to mute it because they would get away from talking football. Wingo would ease in the story which was tough to prevent. But I was at peace with it, only because I believe players wanted that. Fans didn’t however, so ESPN apologized. I don’t expect for this to happen next year since it will be no virtual draft and all attention will be on the players and who ever attends the event in Cleveland, Ohio. Players may have to share their tragedy stories another way. But the bottomline from all of this is that fans/consumers/viewers, however you want to label them, controls a lot.