Potential Path for Texas Rangers to Leave Bally Sports

The Cincinnati Reds, Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury are all plotting potential moves away from their television rights holder. Could the Texas Rangers be next?

Two developments in other markets in the ongoing saga of Bally Sports and Diamond Sports Group could provide potential pathways for the Texas Rangers to exploit in their current impasse.

The first was in Cincinnati, where Sports Business Journal reported that the end of the Reds’ current six-game road trip may mark the end of games broadcast on Bally Sports Ohio.

The Reds, like the Rangers, did not receive a payment from Bally’s parent company earlier this month as DSG is going through Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

DSG has a 15-day period to cure the payment. If it does not, the Reds could take their TV rights back.

After the Reds’ road trip, they face the Chicago White Sox on May 6 in a game set for Apple TV+. After that, it’s not clear what might happen if the payment isn’t made.

Even though the Rangers haven’t gotten their payment from DSG, games are continuing to be broadcast on Bally Sports Southwest. Cincinnati is in a more advantageous position, per the report, because it has a financial stake in Bally Sports Ohio.

Per SBJ, “the presence of that joint venture has kept that (BSO) separate from the bankruptcy proceeding.”

The other development is in Arizona, where SBJ reported that the Phoenix Suns (NBA) and Phoenix Mercury (WNBA) would enter into an agreement with Gray Television and the Kiswe streaming service to broadcast their games as they intend not to renew their contract with Bally Sports Arizona.

The details of the contract aren’t known yet, but the release indicates the two teams will partner with three Gray-owned TV stations and Kiswe, which will reach more than 2.8 million homes in the market. The release indicated the current arrangement can only reach one-third of the viewership.

SBJ reported that BSA says it has the right to make match any offer to the Suns if the offer is less than the last offer from BSA/DSG.

DSG failed to make its payment to the Rangers on April 15. The Rangers joined with MLB, the Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Guardians earlier this month in a legal effort to receive the rights fee payments owed while DSG goes through bankruptcy proceedings.

DSG’s failure to make its scheduled payments to teams like the Rangers could allow those teams, along with MLB, to begin a process to break free of those contracts. The Rangers sent a letter to DSG before it entered bankruptcy stating it would terminate its TV rights agreement if the company became insolvent.

The Rangers, per that report, actually consider the agreement to be severed, while DSG disagrees. The Rangers have also reportedly sought a new broadcast partner for the past month.

From the time DSG skipped the Rangers payment, it has 30 days to cure the payment. A bankruptcy judge will consider MLB’s full motion on May 31.

The Rangers originally signed a 20-year, $3 billion deal in 2010 with Fox Sports Southwest, which was purchased by DSG and became Bally Sports Southwest in 2019. It is believed the Rangers are owed $111 million in 2023.

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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard

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