After 46 years as the radio voice of the Wichita State Shockers, Mike Kennedy has announced he will retire at the conclusion of the 2025-2026 athletic season.
The 77-year-old began calling games for the university in 1980. In 2023, he reached a milestone of announcing 1,400 consecutive Wichita State Shockers men’s basketball games.
During his tenure, he’s called basketball, baseball, and football broadcasts for the university.
In a video published to social media, Mike Kennedy shared the reasoning behind his decision.
“When the current academic and athletic year comes to an end in the spring, I have made the decision to retire as the play-by-play voice of Wichita State athletics,” Kennedy shared. “This has not been an easy decision, as you can imagine. But after a great deal of thought and consideration, I know in my heart it’s the right time to take this step, and at the forefront of my decision is a desire to be able to spend more time with my family.
“I have been truly blessed to do something I love for a university I love for 46 years now,” Kennedy continued. “Over that time, there have been so many great moments and memories, but above all has been the opportunity to develop so many long standing relationships and friendships with coaches and administrators, student athletes, fellow broadcasters and you, the fans.”
“Mike Kennedy is synonymous with Wichita State and his connection to – and throughout – our journey is immeasurable,” Wichita State Director of Athletics Kevin Saal said. “His professionalism, authenticity, and unwavering commitment to excellence have elevated our broadcasts, uniquely connected Shocker Nation to our sports programs in authentic ways and strengthened the Shocker brand for nearly half a century. His legacy is profound, lasting, highly impactful and irreplaceable.”
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Westwood One is making a change on its nationally syndicated late evening show, America at Night. Rich Valdes is exiting, with McGraw Milhaven set to take over the program.
Valdes became the host of the 9 PM-12 AM ET in the aftermath of the death of longtime host Jim Bohannon. He helmed the program from the days following Bohannon’s death until the show was relaunched in 2023 with new branding, utilizing the America at Night name.
Valdes served as a producer for The Mark Levin Show and hosted a weekend show on 1210 WPHT, before stepping into the nationally syndicated role at Westwood One.
Milhaven comes to the program after spending the past 21 years as host at The Big 550 KTRS in St. Louis. He ascended to the role of Program Director for that station in June 2014. He will continue to host mornings on the station, in addition to his new role working the late evening show for Westwood One.
“I’m deeply grateful to Westwood One and Collin Jones for entrusting me with America at Night—a show that many consider one of the most cherished programs in radio. It’s both an incredible honor and a profound responsibility,” said Milhaven. “From listening to Larry King and Jim Bohannon in high school, too intimidated to call in, to now being named the host… this journey has exceeded anything I could have imagined. My nightly mission is simple: to seek out great stories from great storytellers—and to share a few of my own along the way.”
“McGraw Milhaven is a trusted voice with a remarkable ability to connect with listeners across the country,” said Westwood One President Collin Jones. “His deep understanding of the issues, combined with his engaging style and journalistic integrity, make him the ideal host to carry forward the legacy of America at Night. We’re thrilled to welcome McGraw to the Westwood One family and look forward to the energy and insight he’ll bring to the national conversation each night.”
McGraw Milhaven will begin hosting the nationally syndicated show on Monday, December 1st.
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Tucker Carlson has been locked in a war of words with Ben Shapiro and Mark Levin in recent weeks. It continued in one of the latest episodes of his podcast.
During an episode of The Tucker Carlson Show, Carlson argued that political commentators and the American public as a whole should do all they can to avoid becoming like Mark Levin, due to their recent remarks about Israel and those who are in opposition of the country’s ongoing conflict in Gaza.
He took aim at Ben Shapiro, arguing that the success of the digital empire founded by the conservative commentator is artificial.
“People like Levin and Ben Shapiro — who at one point had this like media empire propped up by Facebook, The Daily Wire, with some good people on it, it’s fine — spent, I don’t know, a decade posing as someone who actually cared about your concerns as an American,” Carlson said.
“He did it imperfectly,” he continued. “There were flashes that he didn’t really care. And he’s like, ‘No, no, I’m a conservative. I’m a conservative. I’m not just interested in the fortunes of one tiny country in the Middle East with a population of 9 million. No, I have a lot of interest and I really care about this country. And I’m against the trans movement or whatever.”
Tucker Carlson continued his onslaught against Shapiro by stating that he believes the Daily Wire co-founder’s relevance is fading and likely won’t continue much longer, in his eyes.
“I hate to be mean to poor Ben Shapiro, who’s clearly going away as a media force,” Carlson added. He continued by noting that “He will not be a factor in five years. I can promise you that.”
Carlson added that Mark Levin was likely to suffer a similar fate, as well. “Let’s hope he gets better,” Carlson said of Levin, after calling him “unknown to most Americans” because he’s a “third-tier podcaster, TV host, radio host, or whatever.”
The comments from Carlson come after Levin said it was “ugly and embarrassing” to watch Carlson “going through a public midlife crisis of some kind.”
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ESPN 1320 has a new Brand Manager, as Kyle Madson has been named the new leader of the Audacy sports talk brand in Sacramento.
Madson is no stranger to the Sacramento sports radio listeners. He’s hosted The Insiders — heard in middays from 10 AM to Noon — since September 2023. He hosts that show alongside James Ham.
Furthermore, Kyle Madson previously worked as a producer at crosstown Sactown Sports, as well as at sister station 95.7 The Game.
“Kyle has shown strong leadership, deep sports knowledge, and a clear vision for the future of the station,” said Senior Vice President and Market Manager Aaron Miller. “Kyle is the perfect person to lead ESPN 1320 forward. Congratulations, Kyle.”
Previously, the station was overseen by 1080 The Fan program director Jeff Austin until his retirement earlier this year. Charlie Mallonee worked as the assistant brand manager of ESPN 1320 before exiting the company last week.
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Guy Benson has announced he is departing his role as Political Editor at Salem Media-owned Townhall.com after 18 years with the outlet.
Benson shared that he’s worked as a columnist for 18 years and served as the Political Editor for the brand for the past 15 years.
In a farewell column, Guy Benson shared that it was time to move on from his longtime digital home.
“I’ve been blessed with fantastic colleagues over the years; it will be impossible to name them all,” he shared. “It has been a pleasure.
“It’s astonishing how quickly a decade and a half has flown by in these eventful and consequential times,” Benson continued. “From the rise of the Tea Party in opposition to the Obama presidency, to Donald Trump’s second term in office, it’s been an honor to cover and comment on all of it, in this space. But now, I’m moving on.”
Some personal news: After 15 wonderful years at @townhallcom, I am moving on — with deep gratitude to my colleagues & our audience. A few more thoughts below, in my farewell post. Onward…and stay tuned! https://t.co/PQXHypub8s
He will continue to host his nationally syndicated radio show through Fox News Radio and will also continue to serve as a contributor
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Seven months ago, I wrote my first piece for Barrett Media. It was about Cumulus updating Classic Rock KQRS/Minneapolis to a more modern version of the format. The thing I remember most from speaking with Format VP – Alternative/AAA/Classic Rock James Kurdziel was how he said that the audience was mainly concerned about the future of morning host Steve Gorman.
Kurdziel shared that when the station first started stunting to call attention to the changes, many of the early messages from listeners were about making sure the morning show would still be there. He felt that was a great sign. “The audience showed they are very protective of Steve,” said Kurdziel.
With that stuck in my brain, I decided to interview Gorman to learn more about his unique career path which, prior to KQRS, includes drumming for the Black Crowes, sports talk radio, and hosting a syndicated nighttime show. I also wanted to know how he built that intense connection with listeners in Minneapolis.
I caught up to him on a tour bus rolling down the highway on his way to Ashbury Park, New Jersey. He was with his new band Howl Owl Howl which also features Darius Rucker (Hootie and the Blowish) and Mike Mills (REM). That’s part of what makes Gorman’s success in radio so intriguing. He’s defied the odds considering the industry’s history is littered with recording artists who tried to make the leap to radio host and failed.
Gorman says that starting off in sports talk was key to making the leap. “I could not have possibly started in music radio. It was too close. With sports talk every little thing wasn’t so sacred and personal.”
He continued, “I have a real sense of humor about things. As a Sports host if I’m making fun of a band or a musician it’s genuinely in good fun. If I’m doing that as the drummer of the Black Crowes, it’s not fun. People would be like ‘what’s wrong with that guy.’ There’s something that gets lost in translation.”
The other thing that helped Steve go from music to radio was not taking anything for granted. “A lot of times when people have succeeded in one realm they assume they’re gonna succeed in another,” Gorman explained. “I realized that having had a couple of hit records 25 years ago is not a basis of a radio career.”
Gorman set out to prove himself. “I knew I was going to be underestimated by everybody I met, so I have to show them that I’m here and I’m taking it seriously.” He approached radio with the same mentality as being in a band. “I looked at every show like a gig. If you’re going to get on stage and play a show you really owe it to the people that showed up to do the best you can. I think about every radio show the same way.”
Despite his determination and focus his early shows weren’t necessarily good, which was OK with him. “I was willing to not be good because when the Black Crowes started as a local act we were terrible, but we had potential. We just had to keep going and I thought the same thing in radio. I didn’t think I was good at it at all, but I thought that I could be.”
After five years his sports talk show ended. Almost exactly a year later he made his first leap into music radio with the launch of his syndicated night show Steve Gorman Rocks. The show he says is quite different from mornings on KQRS. “I’ve got a great programmer who worries about the music and the format for me. My job is just to make the short breaks between songs interesting or funny or hopefully both. Its real adrenaline. It’s like turn on the mic, go, turn it off.”
Mornings uses a similar set of muscles but in different ways. “The morning show is much more talk and, as much as possible it’s about local things,” he said. “Plus, we get a lot of great listener interaction. I’ve always thought the average guy is a lot funnier than you might think if he is given the right subject, so there’s a lot of a lot of humor in the show from listeners as well what we’re trying to do.”
Which brings us around to why he thinks the listeners were so passionate about making sure his show stayed on after the format update. He chalks it up to being real. “I’m as authentic as I know how to be on the air.” That remains true even when he’s telling stories about living the rock lifestyle in the Black Crowes. “I can drop names with the best of them, but I don’t tell stories to say look how cool I am. It’s more from the point of view that this was a cool thing that I was around for. It didn’t happen because I am great. I just was the right guy at the right place.”
When Gorman started at KQRS, he replaced a market legend, Tom Barnard. I asked if there was a lot of pressure taking over. He again took a pragmatic approach.
“When I buy a Powerball ticket I think my odds are 50-50,” Gorman explained. “I’m going to win it or I’m not. In this case I knew enough to know that no matter who it is some people are going to hate it. But I also knew no one was going to be able to compare me to Tom. They could contrast us but not compare because there was nothing he was doing that I was interested in. We see the world entirely differently.”
Today the show consists of Gorman along with Ryder who he’d already been working with and Fletcher who was added when the format was revised. He says the chemistry between the three of them is growing, much like his new band. As much as he knows Kurdziel won’t want to hear this, the moments he enjoys the most are often the unplanned ones.
“I love discussing a story that just happened where there’s no prep at all. I love being surprised, and having to think on my feet. It might not always make for the best radio, but it always makes for interesting radio.”
Maybe that comes from playing in the Black Crowes, a band that jammed a lot on stage. “It’s a feeling not unlike when you’re a drummer playing a gig and someone on stage looks at you and says, ‘follow me’.”
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Jim Avila taught me more about the television news industry — and about life — than almost anyone I’ve met in this business.
When he worked with us here at Barrett Media, I had the chance to learn from someone who was not just a veteran ABC News correspondent, but a steady voice who carried decades of experience without ever making you feel lesser for having far less.
Jim Avila died Thursday at 69, and the news hit me harder than I expected. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. Few people leave a mark that deep.
Jim shared infinite wisdom about the TV news business. If I had a question, he answered it. If I needed insight on a network, an executive, or a talent, he had it. Jim could walk me through topics in a way that made the complicated seem obvious. He didn’t hoard knowledge. He handed it out freely, as if he felt a responsibility to make sure the next guy didn’t have to learn the hard way.
That’s not as common as it should be in our business. Television news can often feel like a competition between colleagues who should be teammates. Some veterans love to remind you how long they’ve been around. Others like to flash their scars and treat survival as a badge you haven’t yet earned. Jim never acted that way. He knew the value of experience, but he didn’t wield it like a weapon. He shared it out of generosity.
And that generosity wasn’t limited to the newsroom. Jim believed deeply in helping the next generation get a fair shot. That extended well beyond media. It was a philosophy about life. He didn’t think success should be guarded or treated like a family heirloom locked behind glass. Too many in the baby boomer generation — and I say this as an observation, not an insult — tried to pull the ladder up behind them as they climbed. Jim did the opposite. He held the ladder.
He insisted you climb higher than he did. That’s clear in the way he exited his final on-air TV role in San Diego. When he could sniff that budget cuts could be on the horizon, he voluntarily stepped away, saying that it wasn’t fair for those younger than him to lose their jobs while he — in his late 60s — held on.
His guidance was not loud or performative. It was thoughtful, patient, and came without the slightest hint that he expected something in return. He believed the business got better when people tried to lift each other up, not push each other out of the way. He believed people got better the same way.
I respected him in a way I have respected very few. You don’t meet many people who give time and advice with no strings attached. You don’t meet many who blend toughness and kindness so seamlessly. Jim Avila could analyze the structural flaws of a network with the precision of a surgeon. He could also remind you, without sounding preachy, that the work matters less than the people you meet doing it.
In our conversations, he told stories from decades in network news, but never in a self-serving way. He talked about the craft, the stakes, the pressure, and the mistakes that shaped him. When someone with his level of experience takes the time to mentor you, you listen. And you carry those lessons with you.
His passing is a loss for the industry, but it’s a much larger loss for the people he helped along the way. I’m grateful to be one of them, even in the slightest sense. I’m grateful he offered insight and treated me like a colleague long before I had earned that status.
I will miss him. I will miss his insight and his willingness to make this business feel less cold than it can sometimes be. My condolences go out to his family and friends. They shared a man who made an impact on more lives than he probably realized.
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I know what I’m about to suggest flies in the face of everything I am and everything I’ve done for the past 30 years. Sports has been my life — my passion, my career, the thing that’s fed my family and shaped my identity since the day I first cracked a mic. But even for someone like me, someone who has lived and breathed this world for decades, there comes a point where you look around and say: Enough is enough.
Let’s be honest: sports might be the hardest addiction in America to quit for those of us who are so deeply rooted in it. No game tonight? I start to get the shakes. Cigarettes have gum and patches. Alcohol has support groups. Coffee leaves you cranky, but you’ll live. Sugar is brutal, but there are options. But sports? The emotional roller coaster? The identity? The tribalism? The deep need to belong? Good luck quitting once those tentacles are tightly wrapped around you.
Yet somehow, in this wildly one-sided relationship, the valuable fans who ultimately pay the bills are the ones treated the worst. In what universe does a company take away a product you already paid for, blame someone else, make you search for a tiny rebate, and expect you to come back the next day smiling? Only in sports. Only here. Only us.
Which brings us to the latest kick to the fan nether regions: the ESPN–YouTube TV blackout.
Only the Fans Are Losing
Sports brings people together who otherwise can’t agree on anything — families, coworkers, total strangers at airport bars. We live for buzzer-beaters, walk-offs, late-game drama, the hope of miracles. It’s why we keep coming back.
Fans are waiting for that ultimate high where your first kiss, dream job, the first kid, and winning lottery ticket are all jammed into one beautiful, delirious shot of happiness.
Nice thought. For most of us, our team never wins, we don’t get the parade, no trophy, no rings. “Wait ’til next year” never comes, but the price of fandom soars and the lack of respect grows.
Off the field, court, or ice, fans feel more like collateral damage in billion-dollar corporate chess matches. Disney, which owns ESPN, and Google, which owns YouTube TV, are battling over rates. YouTube TV already paid over $2 billion in 2024 and reportedly didn’t want to pay even more. So they fought. And millions of paying fans are left in the dark.
During the blackout, ESPN’s college football audience dropped nearly 15% among YouTube TV’s 5 million subscribers.
Monday Night Football dropped 21%. Plus, this high-priced hissy fit could just be a trial balloon. Disney has its direct-to-consumer ESPN service, and every disruption helps condition fans for what’s next: higher prices, fewer choices, and more subscriptions.
We’re no longer customers. We’re lab rats. And somehow, we keep devouring the cheese.
Then came the insult disguised as generosity.
YouTube TV offered a $20 credit — not automatically applied, of course. You had to log in, dig around menus like you’re cracking a safe, and claim your measly twenty bucks. They could’ve credited everyone automatically. They didn’t. It was another superfan spanking, the corporate version of: “Thank you, sir — may I have another?”
A Time To Rise Up
So what can suffering supporters do about it?
Imagine a world where fans blacked out the blackout. One week. No ESPN. No streams. No logging in. No NFL, no NBA, not even some MACtion. Just seven days of collective “F-This.” Don’t you have some projects around the house you’ve been putting off? Maybe ask Aaron Rodgers about that retreat in Oregon.
The impact would be massive:
• ESPN loses millions in ad revenue • Providers lose millions in subscriber fees • Combined economic shock: potentially over $400 million lost in one week.
That’s before you count the ripple effects on sportsbooks, sports bars, restaurants, wing joints, delivery apps — all of them depending on sports viewership. Suddenly, those corporate executives with their immaculate “fan engagement” PowerPoints would start sweating through their starched collars.
Anywhere else in life, this level of customer disrespect would cause riots. If Ruth’s Chris swapped your steak for a salad because of a supplier dispute? Refund. If Taylor Swift’s sound died because the arena and Ticketmaster were fighting? Outrage. If your prescription bottle was empty due to negotiations? Someone’s getting sued.
But sports fans? We shrug… because we’re hooked. Hooked like a fish that keeps biting the same shiny lure every Sunday, no matter how many times we get yanked out of the water.
Anything Is Possible?
So here it is:
Could American sports fans actually unite for one week? Could we finally say “F-This,” hit pause, and remind every corporate giant who really holds the power?
Fans are the heartbeat of this multibillion-dollar ecosystem. Without us, nothing works.
If we acted together — even briefly — we could shake the sports world.
But will we ever truly say enough is enough? Or will we keep refreshing the app, muttering under our breath, waiting for the next billion-dollar pout-fest to take the games away?
Your move, addicted sports fan. Grab a patch, some dopamine gum, find a support group.
The next time they blackout your game… blackout your wallet — and see who blinks first.
We won’t, but we should.
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If ratings were based on production, many brands would be in trouble. I’m an imaging nerd. I believe elite production can make a good station sound great. But bad production— thin, loose, mismatched VOs, or trying too-hard imaging makes a good station cause eye rolls.
Radio should start fining people for redundancy. Why? Because we hear or read these statements, over-and-over, on a weekly basis:
“Music is everywhere, no one needs Radio for music.”
“Radio’s secret sauce is what’s between the records.”
Yes, music is everywhere. It has been. I had an iPod 20+ years ago. CD players and Walkman’s before that. My parents had 8-Tracks in the car and albums at home.
Radio has always been there and was never alone. Yet Radio is still a leading destination for music. But for how long?
While those “music is ubiquitous” takes are true, let’s give the doom squad their day and play it out, hypothetically:
Music is a wash, no one gets a ratings edge for music.
Now the “what’s between the records” team gets their spotlight. Imagine if ratings were based on production.
Congrats, your Prod Ninja is also the Morning Show, PD and Marketing Director (sorry to those who are doing all four already). Sweepers, Promos, Commercials. If they’re all great — your brand rules the ratings.
I’ve moderated enough focus groups to know listeners don’t geek out on Radio production/imaging. Outside of opinions on music or talent, no one is raving about the promo that ran between Green Day and Ozzy.
It’s because most production is “who cares” to normal people. Bad commercials. Boring, burned-out positioning pieces. Over-hyped promos for prizes they won’t try to win. Copy that is no longer funny. That’s how many listeners describe what they hear.
Those of us inside radio obsess over imaging. We hang on every word and share our epic creations like we’ve just solved all tune-out.
For regular listeners, though — our zips and zaps are just commercials. And the big voice guy doesn’t stop them in their tracks.
They. Just. Don’t. Care.
The logical question: how can we make them care? In most cases, we can’t. It’s how people consume things.
When you watch a game, you’re not analyzing transitions in and out of commercials.
When you binge Sydney Sweeney, you skip the intro editors lost sleep over.
An old research friend, Chris Ackerman used to say, “Every song you play is a marketing statement.” He’s right. But so is every element.
This doesn’t mean punting on imaging. It also doesn’t mean we’re going to get listeners to choose a brand on imaging alone. It’s a reminder that “what’s between the records” shouldn’t ever be an afterthought.
A killer-sounding sweeper with a who cares message isn’t killer — it’s who cares. A great message surrounded by mediocre sound can get lost. Copy, voice and sound should all work together — like guitar, bass, drums and vocals (and maybe keyboards, but that’s debatable).
Production is a Key Driver in Station Personality
Formats like JACK have it dialed. Not flexing over “being #1” or “45-minutes non-stop.” They’re mocking themselves, poking pop culture, just trying to make people laugh between records.
There are RockTernatives that put a lot of effort into making sure imaging meets the chaos of the music and isn’t just keeping the trains on time. KISW, WRIF, KIOZ, WJJO and several others. You can hear the effort — and it can make a difference.
And there are minimalist brands — some at Alternative, non-comm, or small markets — that have punted on most imaging for financial reasons or they use the lack of it as a differentiator.
As you plan for 2026, make sure Production/Imaging is on the agenda. Music brands play almost as many imaging pieces as songs. And if we add commercials, it becomes lopsided — far more produced pieces than songs each day.
Artists remix and remaster records so they sound better. How can your brand remix and remaster the production so it’s a clear advantage?
Don’t ignore commercials. Code spots so the best play first (in the cart days, you’d get reprimanded for not playing the concert spot first). And work with AEs and clients to produce better copy and spots.
I’ll repeat what I said at the start of this column, if ratings were truly based on production, many brands would be in trouble.
It’s like a house:
Music is the format — the foundation every home needs.
Production is the walk-in closet she can’t live without.
It’s the little, but important things that elevate asking price.
BTW: it’s fine to geek-out over a promo. Just remember, the listeners won’t.
It’s the middle of November, and Major League Baseball has yet to officially reveal what everyone was talking about this season. Where can I find my games next year? When news broke in February that ESPN and MLB were mutually opting out of their media rights agreement, speculation began instantly.
What’s the future of Sunday Night Baseball? What other networks would be in play for MLB media deals? Will the new ESPN direct-to-consumer service have baseball play-by-play at all? How much more will all of this cost the consumer?
We’re less than two weeks away from Thanksgiving, and nothing has been officially released. Yet, there is growing speculation not about what’s happening next year, but what could be happening in 2029. Is baseball big enough to demand big bucks for the World Series to be broadcast on multiple networks?
This was an idea floated by sports media insiders Andrew Marchand and John Ourand. Two well-respected people who have their ear to the pulse of much of what’s happening with national broadcasting deals and sports.
For the last quarter century, FOX Sports has been the home of the Fall Classic. Joe Buck, Tim McCarver, and Bob Brenly have morphed into Joe Davis and John Smoltz. Baseball’s crown jewel has held a destination that fans have always depended on for delivery. It’s like the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving or the expected hype of a Duke matchup against North Carolina.
The World Series and FOX Sports have gone hand in hand with one another for more than half of my adult life.
A Curveball
Marchand, speaking on the Marchand Sports Media Podcast. Floated the idea that Major League Baseball could end that warm, comfortable relationship baseball fans have with FOX Sports being the home of the World Series.
“If you’re baseball and you look at 2029. You look at the World Series, I kind of foresee them breaking up that World Series,” Marchand said. “I could see Fox staying in the game for sure. But (I’m not sure about) the idea that Fox will be the only carrier of the World Series. I think they’re going to want the most money.”
Sports media rights are the hottest asset on television currently. Very few programs (if any) draw a significant chunk of the audience that sports drive. It’s the last survivor of appointment viewing in an on-demand world. A can’t-miss contest where every moment is engaged upon, clipped, and wagered for personal gain.
The NBA began its new 11-year media agreements this season worth approximately $76 billion. The NHL just added an additional $11 billion with its new Canadian rights deal with Rogers Communications. The NFL has floated the idea of beginning its rights agreements with networks next year. While MLB is set to announce its temporary deals aiming for every media agreement to end after the 2028 season.
As for the championships themselves, the Super Bowl switches networks every season. The Stanley Cup Final does as well, as will the WNBA Finals beginning next season. It’s not a new concept for sports leagues to move their most valuable moment. Fans have seemed to gravitate to the broadcasts seamlessly in every instance.
Does It Make Sense?
Next year, while not officially announced yet, Major League Baseball will likely have national rights deals with FOX Sports, NBC Sports, TNT Sports, Netflix, Apple, Roku, and likely some agreement with ESPN. That’s two more additional national rights agreements than the sport had just this past season with the additions of Netflix and NBC Sports.
Looking at who’s on the list for next year. MLB would obviously be foolish in today’s current sports media landscape to consider Apple, Roku, or Netflix for the World Series. Yes, Netflix did come to an agreement to stream the World Baseball Classic in Japan next year. That’s not the Fall Classic.
With the remaining networks that MLB will likely be working with. Would NBC Sports give up a Sunday Night Football game for a broadcast of a World Series game?
Sunday Night Football has been the highest-viewed television product for the last several years. I don’t feel putting Sunday Night Football on the revamped NBC Sports Network or Peacock helps their relationship with the NFL. Nor would MLB want that as an option for the World Series.
TNT Sports has never broadcast the World Series but has become a trusted home for the NLCS and Division Series for the last several years. However, Warner Bros. Discovery has started a pivot away from sports as the company is looking for a buyer by Christmas. Does that give MLB assurances for a secure home for the World Series in 2029?
That leaves ESPN. Which was looking for a better media rights deal with baseball earlier this year and then opted out of the $550 million it was paying per year to MLB. Could ESPN put on a quality broadcast for the World Series? Absolutely it could. However, the network is soon to be owned in a small percentage by the NFL and has shifted its focus away from baseball for some time. Is that the partner that MLB wants to entrust with a broadcast of the World Series? The same one that Rob Manfred said was a “shrinking platform”?
That leaves old reliable FOX Sports — 26 straight World Series broadcasts delivering solid viewership and consumer trust for the entirety of the relationship. FOX Sports is the ride-or-die, the woman who always stood by her man. Baseball’s go-to for the biggest stretch of games the season can provide.
Stay Where Your Home Is
There’s too much fragmentation already with the game of baseball. It’s becoming more difficult for fans to find games and costing more when the delivery has become less. Sometimes chasing the biggest dollar makes the smallest sense when customer loyalty is what keeps people coming to you in the first place.
That’s why the concept of moving the World Series like the Super Bowl or Stanley Cup Final currently makes no real sense for the good of the consumer.
In a time when every sport is chasing the next billion-dollar deal, baseball should remember what truly built its value — consistency, familiarity, and trust. The World Series isn’t just another property to sell to the highest bidder; it’s an American ritual with roots as deep as the game itself. For a sport that’s constantly searching for ways to stay relevant, the smartest move might be to simply stay put and grab on to being America’s pastime.
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