Sports TV News

Rob Manfred: Abandoning Linear TV Would ‘be a Mistake’ for Baseball

“I see an ecosystem that is in a period of really rapid change. I think it is particularly focused at the local level, but I also see it as a landscape that presents opportunity if you guess right and manage the change appropriately.”

Published

2 months ago

September 27, 2023

Ricky Keeler

Courtesy: LM Otero, The Associated Press

The media landscape is constantly changing for every sport and that includes Major League Baseball. This year, two teams (San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks) had their broadcasts taken over from Diamond Sports Group by the league.

Commissioner Rob Manfred was a guest on The Marchand And Ourand Sports Media Podcast on Wednesday. When Andrew Marchand asked him about the blackout situations that still occur for local audiences.

The commissioner said that ending any blackouts that it can is the league’s top priority, but that doesn’t mean every one will be resolved at once.

CLIP: We asked commissioner Rob Manfred if we can get rid of blackouts.

MORE IN THE POD: https://t.co/DE5GbXwkbF pic.twitter.com/dgu7l546Og
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) September 27, 2023

“The reason it has taken a long time to get at this blackout issue is when clubs make long-term RSN agreements, they historically have granted exclusivity that covers both sides of the house to that cable provider. If the cable provider doesn’t get distribution in a particular area, you have a blackout. That’s beyond our control. That’s one that has been hard to deal with.”

Manfred knows that the media landscape is in constant change, but in that change, he views the opportunity to improve the reach for teams from a digital perspective while not abandoning the old way of doing things.

For the time being, Manfred sees MLB using a hybrid model to reach fans with a traditional cable bundle and those who watch games on streaming services.

While some sports such as MLS have gone strictly direct-to-consumer, Manfred thinks thatwould be a mistake for baseball because the linear TV audience is still significant.

“I do believe there are going to be people who persist in that model for a period of time that’s long enough to make it worthwhile to hang in there and reap those economics. I think that to abandon that piece of the landscape is a mistake. I think the better approach is to try to expand the places where the content is available.

“The nice thing about some of the newer digital platforms is that they are not all that concerned about allowing us to continue in the traditional bundle side-by-side.”

Speaking of Apple, as MLB finishes year two of having Friday night games on the streaming service, the commissioner said he has enjoyed the way Apple has presented the game in a different way.

“I think in a sport that has a very traditional broadcast history, that that’s a really good thing. I think the relationship with Apple has re-confirmed our view of the fundamental value of content and it makes me optimistic about where we are heading in the future.”

Ricky Keeler

Ricky Keeler is a reporter for BSM with a primary focus on sports media podcasts and national personalities. He is also an active podcaster with an interest in pursuing a career in sports media. You can find him on Twitter @Rickinator555 or reach him by email at [email protected].

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SEC Commissioner Tells Pat McAfee Someone at ESPN Leaked 2024 Schedule Without Permission

“We were trying to protect it. Someone at ESPN apparently leaked it.”

Published

16 hours ago

December 1, 2023

Jeff Kotuby

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey isn’t particularly thrilled that his new top broadcast partner leaked a portion of next year’s schedule a bit early.

During an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show, which just so happens to be an ESPN property, Sankey mentioned his displeasure at the Worldwide Leader for leaking a portion of the 2024 SEC schedule early. According to Sankey, the league and the network agreed to release the schedule together in the near future.

“We were trying to protect it,” Sankey said. “Someone at ESPN apparently leaked it,” according to Yahoo Sports college football reporter Ross Dellenger.

Greg Sankey, on Pat McAfee Show, displeased that the SEC’s own TV partner, ESPN, reported a portion of the 2024 schedule this week – two weeks before the network & league had agreed to unveil the schedules.

"We were trying to protect it. Someone at ESPN apparently leaked it."
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) December 1, 2023

While leaks in the media space are hardly a new phenomenon, especially when it comes to something as desirable as a football conference’s yearly schedule, a leak this early in the newly-formed ESPN-SEC relationship is less than ideal. Starting next season, ESPN will take over as the SEC’s primary broadcast partner, assuming the position CBS had long held for decades.

In the leaked portion of the schedule, the Georgia Bulldogs and Alabama Crimson Tide will play in the regular season for just the third time in the past 15 years. We also know the Bulldogs will play the debuting Texas Longhorns in Texas, while the Tide will play the other Oklahoma Sooners on the road.

Jeff Kotuby

Jeff Kotuby is a nationally-published journalist with bylines on many popular broadcasting and pop culture sites, including The Streamable, eBaum’s World, Twin Galaxies, and more. Jeff grew up in the shadows of New York City and cultivated his love for sports media with the classic broadcasting voices of the area, like Mike & The Mad Dog, Mike “Doc” Emerick, and Michael Kay. You can reach Jeff on Twitter @JeffKotu3y.

Sports TV News

Jim Boeheim Making Analyst Debut on ACC Network, Joining The CW

Published

18 hours ago

December 1, 2023

BSM Staff

Courtesy: Codie Yan, The NewsHouse

Former Syracuse Orange basketball head coach Jim Boeheim will make his debut as an analyst on Saturday, Dec. 2 on the ACC Network. Boeheim will be on the broadcast for the matchup between Florida State and North Carolina at 2 PM ET featuring play-by-play announcer Wes Durham and sideline reporter Cory Alexander.

Boeheim will make his studio debut on Tuesday, Dec. 5 during halftime of the men’s prime-time doubleheader games on the day – which consists of Central Connecticut against Boston College at 6 PM ET, followed by Cornell taking on Syracuse at 8 PM ET.

On the program, he will be joined by host Kelsey Riggs and analyst Luke Hancock, and he will also remain on the air for the 10 p.m. edition of Nothing But Net, the network’s signature basketball show.

Additionally, Jim Boeheim also joined Westwood One and is reportedly set to work on The CW coverage of ACC basketball, debuting this Saturday with pre-taped segments during halftime of two conference games. News of Boeheim working with The CW was first reported by Mike Waters of Syracuse.com.

Boeheim departed Syracuse University after 47 seasons as a coach and holding an overall win-loss record of 1,015-441. He has the second-most wins at the Division I level in the history of college basketball, only being surpassed by former Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

BSM Staff

Sports TV News

Dan Le Batard: I Thought Pat McAfee Would Grow College GameDay, But That Hasn’t Happened

Le Batard said McAfee is playing under a different set of rules than others at ESPN.

Published

1 day ago

December 1, 2023

Jordan Bondurant

(Photo: ESPN Images)

Pat McAfee has checked all the boxes Disney and ESPN leadership had when the former NFL punter brought his daily sports talk show into the fray, but one area where it seems like the waters aren’t so smooth for McAfee is in his reception as an analyst on College GameDay.

GameDay viewers have not shied away from making their feelings known that they don’t like seeing McAfee on the show, and Dan Le Batard has found the criticism quite interesting.

On The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz on Thursday, Le Batard said he thought having Pat McAfee on GameDay would continue taking the show to the next level, but it turns out he was wrong in some respects.

“And so they get McAfee and they give him a new set of rules,” Le Batard said. “But I thought that would result in College GameDay getting bigger and better. More popular. I underestimated the allegiance that the viewer has to David Pollack.”

“I’m reading him and everyone around him saying he’s a good teammate, they all love him, they’re all getting along with him,” Le Batard added. “He is effusive, he is such a positive person. He is effusive in his praise for the people on that sat. But now the numbers are coming back, and this is something that McAfee couldn’t have expected.”

Executive producer Mike Ruiz chimed in saying that a contributing factor in the changing conditions at GameDay is due to the mass layoffs and non-renewals of more expensive talent over the last couple years. He said there was going to be a natural need to switch things up after cutting ties with the likes of Pollack, Tom Rinaldi, and Chris “The Bear” Fallica.

“The format of the show when you take someone like that, you’re changing it,” Ruiz said. “You’re changing the emotional stories that made you cry in advance of a Purdue/Ohio State game. All that stuff starts going away. And now it’s not just going away, some of that stuff is going to FOX.”

Dan Le Batard responded saying he wasn’t trying to blame Pat McAfee for Big Noon Kickoff closing the gap on GameDay and negative fan feedback. But all of a sudden now that FOX can tout its pregame show continuing to grow and be a successful alternative to ESPN’s product, the narrative shifts.

“I always say perception is not reality, but when all you have is perception and fudged numbers, FOX is saying, ‘We’ve caught College GameDay. We’ve caught one of the most popular shows in the history of sports television,'” Le Batard said.

Jordan Bondurant

Jordan Bondurant is a features reporter for Barrett Sports Media. He’s a multimedia journalist and communicator who works at the Virginia State Corporation Commission in Richmond. Jordan also contributes occasional coverage of the Washington Capitals for the blog NoVa Caps. His prior media experiences include working for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Danville Register & Bee, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, WRIC-TV 8News and Audacy Richmond. He can be reached by email at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @J__Bondurant.