ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – The Atlanta Braves ended their deal with a regional sports network, according reports from ESPN and the Associated Press.
The reports said the Braves ended their deal with Main Street Sports Group, which broadcast Braves games under the name FanDuel Sports Network.
The Braves were one of nine teams to end their deals, joining the Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays.
“No matter what happens, whether it’s Main Street, a third party or MLB media, fans are going to have the games,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said Thursday.
Teams that terminated their contracts could reach new deals with Main Street, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Our focus, particularly given the point in the calendar, is to maximize the revenue that’s available to the clubs, whether that’s MLB Media or third party,” Manfred said. “The clubs have control over the timing. They can make a decision to move to MLB Media because of the contractual status now. I think that what’s happening right now clubs are evaluating their alternatives.
“Obviously they’ve made significant payroll commitments already and they’re evaluating the alternatives to find the best revenue source for the year and the best outlet in terms of providing quality broadcasts to their fans.”
Manfred said local media provides more than 20% of industry revenue.
MLB and the players’ association for 2024 allowed discretionary fund distributions of up to $15 million each to teams whose local media revenue had declined since 2022 or 2023, but they did not reach a similar agreement for 2025.
“We are not providing financial assistance right now,” Manfred said.
Manfred spoke at a news conference to announce an initiative that includes Foster Love and envisions 250,000 volunteer hours to mark the 250th anniversary of the United States. At the news conference, MLB staff assembled duffel bags with goods for foster care children.
Gray Media simulcast 15 regular season games in 2025, reaching 15 million households in 24 markets spread across six states.
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