Two different reports about the future of Diamond Sports — the parent company that carries games on Bally Sports regional channels — present an intriguing picture of how the company plans to stay afloat and emerge from a bankruptcy process that started in March.
Will your favorite Minnesota teams end up on Amazon Prime Video?
In a make-or-break time for Diamond Sports, the parent company that runs Bally Sports regional networks, two big pieces of news emerged this week.
December 19, 2023 at 7:40PM
In turn, these plans could have major implications for how Minnesota fans watch their favorite teams in 2024 and beyond. Bally Sports North in 2023 was the regional sports home of the Twins, Timberwolves, Lynx and Wild.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Diamond Sports is in negotiations with Amazon involving a "strategic investment and a multiyear streaming partnership" that would make Amazon Prime Video "the streaming home for Diamond games."
As I talked about on Tuesday's Daily Delivery podcast, leveraging the deep pockets of Amazon — which already has Thursday night NFL games and is eager to add more sports as it competes with other streaming platforms — is an intriguing possibility.
It's unclear how such a partnership would work, but it could in theory help Diamond broker deals for streaming rights with Major League Baseball. And it could be a lifeline that keeps Diamond operating instead of liquidating if it comes to fruition and is approved.
But it also could serve as a complication to the other piece of news to emerge this week: Diamond has agreed to pay in full its MLB contracts in 2024 to most of the teams it carries, according to Sports Business Journal.
The Twins, Guardians and Rangers are not included in that list, though. The Guardians and Rangers are still under contract with Diamond, while the Twins' Bally Sports North contract expired at the end of the 2023 season. SBJ reports that Diamond is expected to "put in offers for those teams — presumably at lower rights fees than they have been paying."
The Twins' TV plans for 2024 are up in the air as this process plays out. Their contract with Diamond Sports paid them $54.8 million last season.
But a major source of frustration in 2023, the final year on Bally Sports North, was that Twins games were not included in the Bally Sports+ streaming package. Former radio and new Twins TV voice Cory Provus said earlier this month that he has been assured that access to games in 2024 will no longer be an issue.
Exactly what that looks like for the Twins remains to be seen, but a resolution — one that could include local games streamed on Amazon Prime Video — seems to be coming soon.
Here are four more things to know today:
*Former Gophers coach Jerry Kill was FIRED UP after his New Mexico State team's loss in the New Mexico Bowl over the weekend. This story helps fill in what led up to his remarks.
*The latest opposing coach to praise the Timberwolves? Miami's Erik Spoelstra after Minnesota's 112-108 comeback victory in Miami on Monday, which included suffocating second-half defense. "They're the No. 1 defensive team in the league for a reason," Spoelstra said.
*Tuesday's podcast also included a film review from the Vikings' 27-24 loss to the Bengals. It was a frustrating game in which the Vikings couldn't stop giving up big yards in the fourth quarter — and couldn't get a few inches in overtime.
*On Wednesday's show, the Star Tribune's Jeff Day will talk about the big Gophers volleyball news that standout Taylor Landfair has entered the transfer portal.
When he was hired after the disastrous 2016 season to reshape the Twins, Derek Falvey brought a reputation for identifying and developing pitching talent. It took a while, but the pipeline we were promised is now materializing.
