Baseball fans have been in the middle of a corporate tug-of-war for years now. We're speaking of course about the battle between Diamond Sports Group and several major cable providers. These two entities have kept the most important thing to baseball fans out of reach from them for quite sometime. The ability to watch baseball.
You know the story by now, but as a refresher Diamond Sports Group (who runs and operates Bally Sports) filed for bankruptcy in early 2023. Operations continued normally last year, but then DSG hit another snag.
Some teams, like the Arizona Diamondbacks, adjusted as they saw the free fall coming. Unfortunately, the Braves fell victim to the most recent hurdle in this marathon debate when Bally was taken off major cable provider Xfinity/Comcast in early May.
Braves nearing return to Comcast
Thankfully, fans finally have something to cheer about in this ongoing battle. Yesterday afternoon Evan Drellich of The Athletic reported that Diamond Sports Group was nearing an agreement with Comcast.
Diamond lawyer Brian Hermann: "We believe that we have made substantial progress on resolving our issues with Comcast, and we have the intention of fully documenting and executing an agreement with Comcast to broadcast our RSNs in the very near term. That is good news item No. 1"
— Evan Drellich (@EvanDrellich) July 24, 2024
Now this deal hasn't crossed the finish line yet, but this deal would bring baseball back to Comcast customers and fans of 12 different MLB teams. As for what goes on from there, it's still not clear.
Despite the Braves recent poor play, the ability to at least watch them at all is a welcome development for fans. Whether it's the local blackouts or constant battle between the big corporations baseball fans have been robbed. It's not the final step, but it is a step in the right direction.
We'll have more as the deal continues to progress, but barring any late surprises from either side (which we know is possible) Braves fans who have Comcast should expect their favorite team to return soon. Stay tuned here at HTHB for all the latest developments in this ongoing TV broadcast saga.