MLB Rejects Amazon's Proposal to Stream Angels Games in 2024: Report

The company that owns Bally Sports West has a bankruptcy hearing Wednesday.

Amazon subscribers hoping to cut the cable cord and watch the Angels in 2024 were dealt a blow this week. 

The New York Post reported Monday that Amazon's $150 million bid to take over streaming rights from Diamond Sports Group's 11 Major League Baseball properties — including the Angels — was rejected by MLB.

From Josh Kosman's report:

Amazon attempted to come to Diamond’s rescue last month by offering to invest roughly $150 million in the company and take over streaming broadcasts for the 11 baseball teams it carries, which include the World Series champs Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals, a source close to the situation told The Post.

However, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred called foul on the proposal ahead of a bankruptcy hearing slated for Wednesday, the insider said.

“They rejected it because Amazon wanted a streaming deal for more than one year,” the source told The Post.

Regardless, the end appears to be near for Bally Sports West, the cable and streaming home of the Angels. Last year, a federal judge approved a proposal by Diamond that would allow the company to stream NBA, NHL and MLB games through the end of September 2024, then begin paying off debt to creditors.

Diamond filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, claiming $8 billion in debt. The obvious route to paying off that debt would be to liquidate its broadcast assets. In Southern California, that includes the Angels, Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings.

If MLB is able to centralize streaming control of the 11 Diamond Sports teams (all of whom are carried under the Bally Sports brand), it will mark a milestone shift in how games are distributed to consumers. 

In theory, Amazon could still emerge as a streaming partner of the league. The Post quoted a source saying Amazon would still like to do a deal with MLB. 

But this is just one of many possible outcomes lying on the other side of Diamond's bankruptcy proceedings. MLB's options are still emerging, and it's unclear which represents the best path forward for the league.

In the meantime, the Angels will wait on the sideline while a bankruptcy judge determines the next step in the fate of their longtime broadcast partner.