According to one sports media insider, ESPN might have to opt out of its baseball contract for more baseball. John Ourand, now of Puck, indicated that ESPN could utilize its opt-out feature as soon as 2024 to try and secure even more baseball for its platforms.
When ESPN and Major League Baseball agreed to a seven-year, $550 million per year contract just last October, reports indicated the network had an opt-out for 2025. However, Ourand thinks ESPN could exercise this opt-out after this season. Relax, baseball fans — ESPN is not ditching baseball. In fact, ESPN will likely try this to get more bang for its buck by including local rights deals in a new agreement.
Recently, ESPN began featuring local broadcasts on its ESPN app, which could synergize well with MLB’s new approach to broadcasting teams, specifically those who were abandoned by Bally Sports. MLB owns the broadcasting rights to a few of its clubs, including the Diamondbacks and Padres. The Colorado Rockies could be another contender for this sort of deal if no local TV rights contract materializes over the next few days. ESPN could then partner with MLB to broadcast these games digitally or over linear channels for more baseball content.
It’s a risky move that would no doubt scare Major League Baseball for at least a little bit but it could pay off big time for both parties, especially as ESPN seeks a strategic partner to eventually launch its standalone direct-to-consumer app in 2025.
