Twins appear likely to stay on Bally Sports North this season as TV deadline looms

Where this Twins season is headed is anyone's guess after a promising start has descended into a losing record.

But the outlook for their games being broadcast on TV, at least in the short-term, is coming into focus as a key deadline looms Saturday.

A sometimes-tense relationship between the Twins and Diamond Sports — the sports media company that runs Bally Sports North — appears likely to continue for at least a few months based on recent developments, including a surprising compromise that could be emerging between Diamond Sports and the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Diamond Sports filed for bankruptcy in March, and soon thereafter skipped a payment as part of its $54.8 million contract to broadcast Twins games in 2023.

Diamond eventually made that payment after a court ruling, and the next payment is due to the Twins on Saturday. Diamond must either pay the Twins to keep showing games in 2023 or file a motion in bankruptcy court with the intent to relinquish the rights to the games.

So far, Diamond has not filed that motion and Twins games are continuing to be shown on BSN. Diamond Sports did file a similar motion last week regarding Diamondbacks games on Bally Sports Arizona, and a hearing for a judge to determine whether Diamond could walk away from those rights was scheduled for Thursday.

But late Wednesday, the Diamondbacks and Diamond Sports released a joint statement announcing the hearing was being postponed "due to ongoing and positive discussions toward finding a solution. During this time, Bally Sports Arizona will continue to broadcast D-backs games."

The fact that those parties are working toward a resolution to keep games on that Bally channel is perhaps a notable development for the Twins.

The Twins' contract with Bally Sports North expires after this season, and prevailing wisdom as of now is that Diamond will make its payment to the Twins and keep showing games for at least the next few months.

With that as a backdrop, here are three more things to consider about the situation as it pertains to the Twins and other teams around Major League Baseball — as I talked about on Thursday's Daily Delivery podcast.

All of these proceedings impact Diamond Sports and MLB teams like the Twins. They also have a massive effect on viewers in those markets who are left to wonder if the way they watch games is about to change midyear.

That in fact has already happened in one market: San Diego. Diamond walked away from its Padres contract nearly a month ago, and Major League Baseball took over production and distribution of games almost overnight.

While the process wouldn't be quite as abrupt if Diamond ultimately decides to relinquish its Twins rights in the coming days, fans should have some comfort in knowing the process in San Diego has been relatively seamless.

MLB was well-prepared for the possibility, and Commissioner Rob Manfred has made no secret of his desire to obtain widespread local broadcast rights for many teams in coming years.

Padres games have been distributed on dedicated channels via cable and satellite providers as well as a direct-to-consumer streaming option priced at $19.99 a month — the latter option being one that previously was not available.

The in-game, on-camera team (play-by-play, analysts) remained the same, while MLB hired a lot of the audio and video engineers who previously worked on the Bally broadcasts.

A social media search finds several Padres fans frustrated with a sub.-500 team but virtually no complaints about broadcast quality or access to games since the switch.

"The main takeaway from the launch of the Padres broadcasts was the final confirmation that we are ready to go," Doug Johnson, MLB's senior vice president for local media, said in a recent interview with Sports Video Group. "With such a quick turnaround, it was incredible to see it all come together. I have been absolutely thrilled at how the broadcasts have gone so far."

That should hearten Twins fans who have grown frustrated with BSN as the channel has disappeared from streaming platforms like Hulu and YouTube TV as well as Dish Network.

Even if the Twins stay with BSN for the rest of this year, it's possible MLB takes over production and distribution in 2024 after the contract expires. And by all accounts, those broadcasts are going well in San Diego.

Is there a chance that the Twins and Diamond Sports could continue their relationship beyond this season? Short answer: yes.

In court a month ago, Twins President Dave St. Peter testified that Diamond Sports attempted to negotiate a new five-year contract earlier this year at roughly the same $54.8 million yearly rate it is paying now.

Any future Twins contract would almost certainly need to include direct-to-consumer rights, which BSN holds for Wild and Wolves games (but not the Twins) and were offered this past season via the Bally Sports Plus streaming app.

Diamond might be motivated to work with the Twins because it also values the contracts it has to show the Wild and Wolves — both of which are believed to still have multiple years left on them.

Without the Twins, the regional sports channel would have a massive programming hole for much of the spring and summer and might not be able to sustain itself — something to consider in the coming months when the Wild and Wolves resume play.

While Diamond Sports has acted unpredictably at times in this process, recent developments — particularly Wednesday's joint release of progress with the Diamondbacks — indicate a softening in a relationship that was shown to be contentious in court proceedings a month ago.

Perhaps MLB's willingness and smooth takeover of Padres broadcasts has changed the leverage in negotiations.

The bottom line for the Twins and their fans is that the status quo of games remaining on Bally Sports North at least for the rest of this season is more likely now than it was a month ago, and we'll gain more certainty in a matter of days.

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The Star Tribune is increasing its coverage of major changes in broadcast sports, with Michael Rand leading the way. Look for continued coverage all summer at startribune.com/sportstv.