There is more clarity about the broadcasting status of angels. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports that the club has an agreement to buy a portion of Main Street Sports and launch its own TV network. Some final details are still being worked out, so it won’t be officially announced until next week.
The new network will also include the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings and has yet to be named, but will replace the FanDuel Sports Network on cable and satellite providers in Southern California. Fans can also purchase a streaming package directly from the league. It’s either $99.99 for the Angels only or $199.99 for the full league experience.
The Angels were one of nine MLB teams that had an agreement with Main Street Sports as of a few months ago. That company, which owned the FanDuel Sports Network channels, has struggled financially for years as people switch from cable subscriptions to digital broadcasts. Main Street missed out on some payments to some clubs earlier this year, leading nine to terminate their deals. In less than a month, six of them voted for MLB to host their broadcast.
Atlanta, the Tigers and the Angels were the three remaining in the air. Atlanta launched BravesVision last month, a team-owned entity that will sell broadcast rights to fans and make future TV deals. The Tigers announced to Detroit SportsNet earlier this week. It looks like MLB will be heavily involved in that one, as the network will be “powered by MLB” and subscribers can stream the Tigers through the MLB app. The network will televise the Tigers and the NHL’s Red Wings.
The Angels network will likely share some features with Detroit SportsNet. Both will involve one MLB club and one NHL team. Both will also appear to involve MLB handling the broadcast side of things.
This seems to be a good development for fans. For those watching on television, nothing will really change. Even the aerial talent is expected to remain. For those who want to broadcast the club in the area without turning off the electricity, that is now possible. The impact of the club’s influence is unclear. As of a few years ago, the Angels were getting $125MM annually from their deal with Main Street, then called Diamond Sports Group. Turning on local streaming will do some of that for you but not all.
RosterResource projects the Angels to pay about $180MM this year, up from about $25MM last year. That doesn’t count the fact that Anthony Rendon he agreed to waive most of his $38MM salary, saving the Halos about $30MM in the short term. Owner Arte Moreno recently spoke about the club’s financial situation and admitted that uncertainty in the TV department is affecting spending. “Will it go back to $200 million? Maybe,” Moreno said of the payroll. “We have to fix our TV thing and we have to develop our brand.”
Presumably, the new broadcast deal won’t affect the show immediately. Angels still have to do things in terms of cable and satellite. They may also want to experience a new streaming set for a while before making any rash decisions. There are still other notable unsigned free agents, including starting pitchers Lucas Giolito again Zack Littell. The Halos could use more depth in the rotation but it’s unclear if they plan to make a push for one of those two, or other free agents.
Internally, the Angels will have a new leader on the business side. President John Carpino will retire on April 6 and will be replaced by senior vice president Molly Jolly. General manager Perry Minasian remains the leader of the front office on the baseball side.
Photo courtesy of Kirby Lee, Imagn Images
