Rangers Owner Ray Davis Discusses Local TV Situation

The company that owns Bally's Sports Southwest and Rangers television rights may be headed for bankruptcy.

Texas Rangers majority owner Ray Davis told The Dallas Morning News on Wednesday that he believes games will be televised despite the Diamond Sports Group’s financial issues.

Davis attended the Rangers’ Spring Training game on Wednesday and had an expansive conversation with the Morning News. It reported that Davis has been one of the more vocal owners sounding warning bells about the regional sports network situation. For that reason, Davis told the publication that it hasn’t been caught off guard.

“I’m absolutely concerned (with the RSN situation),” he said. “Do I think we’re going to get games televised? Yes, I do. Do I think there will be some labor pains before all this is settled? Yes, I do. Is that going to be a few weeks or a few years? Could be either. I don’t really have that answer yet.

“But I think, for our fans, there will be some distributors that will start carrying our games that haven’t been. So I think we’ll have broader coverage. And I think a lot of blackouts may go away. So maybe it will be even better.”

RSNs — the main networks that carry local sports programming are in trouble.

Diamond Sports Group may file for bankruptcy as early as mid-March. That decision has importance to 14 MLB teams, including the Texas Rangers. Diamond Sports Group owns and operates the 21 Bally’s Sports regional networks nationwide.

Bally’s Sports Southwest, formerly Fox Sports Southwest, owns the local broadcast rights to Rangers, Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Stars.

Diamond Sports Group recently skipped its $140 million interest payment, triggering a 30-day grace period as the company plots its next move.

The Rangers are set to receive $100 million for 2023 in quarterly payments starting this month. If DSG is unable to make rights fee payments, it could impact how the Rangers are able to pay player salaries.

After Diamond Sports Group skipped the interest payment, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred assured baseball fans that if Diamond Sports Group falls into bankruptcy that games for those teams affected will be broadcast.

Warner Brothers Discovery threw more uncertainty on the world of Regional Sports Networks when Sports Business Journal reported that WBD has informed its clients that it intends to pull out of the RSN business in a matter of weeks.

WBD’s RSN networks are branded AT&T SportsNet, which are positioned in the Denver, Houston and Pittsburgh markets, and has a state in Root Sports in Seattle. So WBD’s decision impacts 10 MLB, NBA and NHL teams. The Astros, Mariners, Pirates and Rockies the MLB teams impacted.

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