There may not be much progress towards actual games played in the world of Major League Baseball. Even with that said, there is still exciting news. A new MLB TV deal has been announced.
Earlier, MLB and Turner Sports Broadcasting came to a billion-dollar deal for continued rights to air playoff games. Turner Sports will now continue where they left off from last year. A year where they aired a full National League playoff slate on TBS. Noted first by the New York Post, the new deal will continue the broadcast rights for Turner Broadcasting including a league championship series among other regular and post-season games. Turner’s current contract with Major League Baseball had been set to expire following the 2021 season.
Overall the new MLB TV deal is a very lucrative deal for both MLB and Turner. The broadcasting giant was ponying up $310 million, part of a $787 million postseason media package. The deal comes as one of several for MLB including an already inked long-term deal with Fox. That deal in particular includes the other League Championship Series and the World Series. Within Turner’s current deal, there includes a regular-season package on Sundays. However, the big money that comes with the postseason is noticeably higher. As for this new deal between the MLB and Turner, thoughts around the league suggest it could end up near the $500 million range. It also marks the first major rights agreement under the leadership of new president Jeff Zucker.
BREAKING: MLB and Turner Sports have agreed to a new billion dollar deal for the network to continue broadcasting an LCS and the playoffs, The Post has learned.https://t.co/ZJp92Hcqym
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) June 13, 2020
More Fire to the Heated Discussion
All this comes right in the middle of a heated discussion between the players union and the league itself. It’s a discussion that has continued to put a pause in the sport. Players demand prorated salaries while owners are looking at less. The new agreement for Turner Broadcasting doesn’t have an impact on the 2020 season. But it does show the financial strength that the league currently possesses. It has also sparked outrage in a few players and most notably, Tony Clark, the head of the MLB Players Association.
“It’s now become apparent that these efforts have fallen upon deaf ears,” Clark said in a statement. “In recent days, owners have decried the supposed unprofitability of owning a baseball team and the Commissioner has repeatedly threatened to schedule a dramatically shortened season unless players agree to hundreds of millions in further concessions. Our response has been consistent that such concessions are unwarranted, would be fundamentally unfair to players, and that our sport deserves the fullest 2020 season possible. These remain our positions today, particularly in light of new reports regarding MLB’s national television rights – information we requested from the league weeks ago but were never provided.”
Regardless of how the 2020 season ultimately turns out, the future for Major League Baseball is lucrative. The newly minted deal with Turner adds to the existing agreement with FOX to provide multiple billions in committed money long-term for the league.
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