Spring Training game broadcasts

[Orioles West]

I know the landscape of the RSN’s is drastically changing — but I hope the new Orioles ownership group can find a way to build MASN up enough they can cover spring games in Sarasota again.

[Frobby]

4 hours ago, accinfo said:

Yes agreed this just doesn’t make much sense.  To be generous you are talking about $300-400 per day per person to send them to Florida.  I don’t know how many people they need for these broadcasts but lets say 10 you are talking maybe $100K for them to be there a month.  It is a bad look.  

I don’t really care.  It’s spring training.   Just show me the games, and the announcers can be two Indian guys doing the game remotely from Mumbai for all I care.   I agree it seems dumb, but just show me the games.  

[Going Underground]

Heard the commercial on WBAL radio that they will air the first ST game against Boston. Do we know if the radio broadcast is also being done remotely? Are the Nationals ST games on MASN also being done remotely?

[rm5678]

2 hours ago, Going Underground said:

Heard the commercial on WBAL radio that they will air the first ST game against Boston. Do we know if the radio broadcast is also being done remotely? Are the Nationals ST games on MASN also being done remotely?

As far as I know, the O's radio broadcasters will be on-site in Florida. Not sure about the Nationals TV guys.

[rm5678]

2 hours ago, Going Underground said:

Heard the commercial on WBAL radio that they will air the first ST game against Boston. Do we know if the radio broadcast is also being done remotely? Are the Nationals ST games on MASN also being done remotely?

I've also heard rumors that the first ST game will be on MASN too. If they were smart, they would coordinate it so that the 7 televised games do not coincide at all with the 12 (?) radio games.

[MCO'sFan]

The Banner has an article about MASN today. 

Link

"While some of MASN’s problems are self-inflicted, regional sports networks no longer guarantee the lucrative supplement for traditional revenue streams like tickets, concessions, sponsorships and advertising.

According to the market research firm Insider Intelligence, less than 50% of U.S. households pay for cable — with that number predicted to drop to 34.9% by 2027 — decreasing the amount of money regional sports networks bring in. Teams that rely on revenue from broadcast rights, can’t do that if the networks aren’t turning a profit.

“Producing games, paying rights fees, operating the business, all of those are fixed costs,” Desser said. “When you have revenues decline, that squeezes margins.”

In the last year, the broadcasts for over half of MLB teams have been in flux."

[ThisIsBirdland]

1 minute ago, MCO'sFan said:

The Banner has an article about MASN today. 

Link

"While some of MASN’s problems are self-inflicted, regional sports networks no longer guarantee the lucrative supplement for traditional revenue streams like tickets, concessions, sponsorships and advertising.

According to the market research firm Insider Intelligence, less than 50% of U.S. households pay for cable — with that number predicted to drop to 34.9% by 2027 — decreasing the amount of money regional sports networks bring in. Teams that rely on revenue from broadcast rights, can’t do that if the networks aren’t turning a profit.

“Producing games, paying rights fees, operating the business, all of those are fixed costs,” Desser said. “When you have revenues decline, that squeezes margins.”

In the last year, the broadcasts for over half of MLB teams have been in flux."

I was glad to see them put in writing that the pace is still trending quickly:

It is not yet clear what will happen with MASN when the sale is finalized. A source told The Baltimore Banner that a review of the deal by MLB is moving rapidly, although a date for an owner vote — the last step before it is done — has not been scheduled.

[MCO'sFan]

4 minutes ago, ThisIsBirdland said:

I was glad to see them put in writing that the pace is still trending quickly:

It is not yet clear what will happen with MASN when the sale is finalized. A source told The Baltimore Banner that a review of the deal by MLB is moving rapidly, although a date for an owner vote — the last step before it is done — has not been scheduled.

I don't like alot of their local coverage but the Banner does a great job with all things Orioles. It is a very informative article and discusses (I think fairly) both the internal and external issues that MASN faces. I am beginning to think that it is either sold or the rights are sold and it shuts down. This article also briefly discusses the MASN effect or the sale price of the O's

[interloper]

6 hours ago, Frobby said:

I don’t really care.  It’s spring training.   Just show me the games, and the announcers can be two Indian guys doing the game remotely from Mumbai for all I care.   I agree it seems dumb, but just show me the games.  

I agree. When they let Melewski stream play-by-play I was thrilled to just hear the game, and he did a pretty respectable job honestly. That was a couple years ago though and he didn't do that last year, which was a shame. MLB's gameday is so broken during spring training that it's almost impossible to follow games that aren't on the radio. It's just wild that this stuff is an issue in 2024. 

[Frobby]

22 minutes ago, MCO'sFan said:

I don't like alot of their local coverage but the Banner does a great job with all things Orioles.

I had a promotional deal all last season with the Banner, 6 months for $1 or something like that.   I didn't want to pay full freight, so I cancelled it when my 6 months expired just at the end of the season.  Surprisingly, they made no effort to keep me at a reduced rate from their full price.  I do kind of miss their coverage, especially with all that's been happening with the lease and ownership.   But not enough to pay for a full subscription.

[Sports Guy]

 

[spleen1015]

26 minutes ago, Frobby said:

I had a promotional deal all last season with the Banner, 6 months for $1 or something like that.   I didn't want to pay full freight, so I cancelled it when my 6 months expired just at the end of the season.  Surprisingly, they made no effort to keep me at a reduced rate from their full price.  I do kind of miss their coverage, especially with all that's been happening with the lease and ownership.   But not enough to pay for a full subscription.

How much is a full subscription?

[Frobby]

8 minutes ago, spleen1015 said:

How much is a full subscription?

Actually, it looks like they’re running a 6 months for $1 promotion right now.  Not sure if I’d qualify since I did that once already.  It was something like $17/mo. full freight.  Much more than I’d pay since I only want Orioles coverage and have no interest in the Baltimore local news since I don’t live there.  

[Sports Guy]

I don’t read their stuff because I’m not paying to join but the Banner is easily the best for local sports and they easily have the best writers.

 

I see enough of what is being said on twitter that I feel I don’t need to join to get the gist of stuff.

[SteveA]

Here are the MASN spring games:

Saturday, Feb. 24: Orioles vs. Red Sox in Sarasota, 1 p.m.
Saturday, March 2: Orioles vs. Yankees in Sarasota, 1 p.m.
Monday, March 11: Orioles vs. Yankees in Tampa, 1 p.m.
Tuesday, March 19: Orioles vs. Blue Jays in Dunedin, 1 p.m.
Wednesday, March 20: Orioles vs. Phillies in Sarasota, 6 p.m.
Thursday, March 21: Orioles vs. Red Sox in Fort Myers, 6 p.m.
Saturday, March 23: Orioles vs. Blue Jay in Sarasota, 6 p.m.