Facing the hard July 15 deadline, Diamond Sports Group will reportedly make its next payment to the Cincinnati Reds. On Friday, ESPN reporter Alden González tweeted that they will make the payment to the team and, by proxy, keep them aboard even through its ongoing bankruptcy crisis.
“Diamond Sports Group plans to make its next scheduled payment to the Reds and will thus keep them as part of the Bally Sports umbrella for the foreseeable future,” González said.
Source: Diamond Sports Group plans to make its next scheduled payment to the Reds and will thus keep them as part of the Bally Sports umbrella for the foreseeable future.
Diamond faced a July 15 deadline, with non-payments expected to result in MLB taking over (like w/ Padres).
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) July 14, 2023
Earlier this year, Sports Business Journal reported that the group missed a payment to the team, which put their future in doubt. But in early May, a payment was made to Cincinnati‘s venerable MLB club. The drama was heightened this time, as news broke just a day before the deadline. But in any event, Bally Sports Ohio will continue to air Reds games for the foreseeable future.
That future is obviously quite uncertain. Ripple effects of Diamond Sports Group’s crisis are being felt throughout the country. Teams like the San Diego Padres are being aired through Major League Baseball. Meanwhile, the Phoenix Suns and Mercury will have their games aired on over-the-air television, as announced Friday.
Time will tell to truly see what the effect of all this will be. At least, in the case of the Reds, stability will be maintained.
About Chris Novak
Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022