Bally Sports Ohio has released their schedule for broadcasts for spring training in 2023. There will only be seven Cincinnati Reds games on Bally Sports Ohio this spring, which is par for the course for their coverage. Some teams, like the Los Angeles Angels, have broadcasts available for nearly every single spring training game that they play (26 televised games). Reds fans get the opportunity to see 7-of-31 scheduled games via the regional sports network.
Bally Sports won’t be the only place you can find Reds games. Some games will be broadcast on the opponent’s regional sports network, which will be on MLBtv and at times also picked up by MLB Network (live or on delay). It seems that every so often we will also get a generic broadcast on MLBtv with just one overhead camera angle – and that beats not having anything, but those usually aren’t announced until the day of the game. We will update the schedule as more information on broadcasts are added, but here is what it looks like for now:
TV Broadcasts
| Date | Time (ET) | Station | Opponent | Broadcast |
| 25-Feb | 3:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | Cleveland Guardians | Guardians |
| 27-Feb | 3:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | Texas Rangers | Reds |
| 28-Feb | 3:00pm | MLB Network | Los Angeles Dodgers | Dodgers |
| 4-Mar | 4:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | Oakland Athletics | Reds |
| 5-Mar | 4:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | Oakland Athletics | Reds |
| 9-Mar | 3:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | Chicago Cubs | Cubs |
| 11-Mar | 1:00am | MLB Network | Seattle Mariners | Tape Delay |
| 14-Mar | 9:00pm | MLB Network | Kansas City Royals | Royals |
| 16-Mar | 1:00am | MLB Network | Chicago Cubs | Tape Delay |
| 20-Mar | 4:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | Los Angeles Angels | Reds |
| 22-Mar | 9:05pm | Bally Sports Ohio | San Diego Padres | Reds |
The full schedule of games on MLB Network is still not available, but they have it set through the middle of March. The list is available here. Here are the road broadcasts for Reds games that are almost assuredly going to be available on MLBtv (and possibly on MLB Network):
| Date | Time (ET) | Station | Opponent | Broadcast |
| 28-Mar | 3:05pm | SportsNet LA | Los Angeles Dodgers | Dodgers |
| 5-Mar | 3:10pm | Bally Sports West | Los Angeles Angels | Angels |
| 8-Mar | 3:10pm | Bally Sports SD | San Diego Padres | Padres |
| 10-Mar | 3:10pm | Root Sports NW | Seattle Mariners | Mariners |
| 12-Mar | 3:05pm | SportsNet LA | Los Angeles Dodgers | Dodgers |
| 14-Mar | 9:05pm | Bally Sports KC | Kansas City Royals | Royals |
| 15-Mar | 9:05pm | Marquee | Chicago Cubs | Cubs |
| 18-Mar | 4:05pm | NBCSCA | Oakland Athletics | Athletics |
| 19-Mar | 4:10pm | Bally Sports WI | Milwaukee Brewers | Brewers |
| 20-Mar | 4:05pm | Bally Sports West | Los Angeles Angels | Angels |
| 22-Mar | 9:05pm | Bally Deportes SD | San Diego Padres | Padres |
| 26-Mar | 4:10pm | ATT SportsNet | Colorado Rockies | Rockies |
| 26-Mar | 4:10pm | Bally Sports GL | Cleveland Guardians | Guardians |
Radio Broadcasts
Here is the radio schedule for the Cincinnati Reds this spring. 27 of the 31 games will be on the radio. Two of the missing four games will be available on television and the other two are split squad games that just aren’t being broadcast.
| Date | Time (ET) | Station | Opponent |
| 25-Feb | 3:05pm | 700 WLW | Cleveland Guardians |
| 26-Feb | 3:05pm | 1360 WSAI | San Francisco Giants |
| 27-Feb | 3:05pm | 1360 WSAI | Texas Rangers |
| 28-Feb | 3:05pm | 700 WLW | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 1-Mar | 3:05pm | 1360 WSAI | Oakland Athletics |
| 3-Mar | 3:05pm | 1360 WSAI | Chicago White Sox |
| 4-Mar | 3:05pm | 700 WLW | Kansas City Royals |
| 4-Mar | 4:05pm | TV Only | Oakland Athletics |
| 5-Mar | 3:10pm | 1360 WSAI | Los Angeles Angels |
| 5-Mar | 4:05pm | TV Only | Oakland Athletics |
| 6-Mar | 8:05pm | 700 WLW | Colorado Rockies |
| 7-Mar | 3:05pm | 700 WLW | San Francisco Giants |
| 8-Mar | 3:10pm | 1360 WSAI | San Diego Padres |
| 9-Mar | 3:05pm | 1360 WSAI | Chicago Cubs |
| 10-Mar | 3:10pm | None | Seattle Mariners |
| 10-Mar | 8:05pm | 700 WLW | Arizona Diamondbacks |
| 11-Mar | 3:05pm | 700 WLW | Texas Rangers |
| 12-Mar | 4:05pm | 700 WLW | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 13-Mar | 4:05pm | 1360 WSAI | Milwaukee Brewers |
| 14-Mar | 9:05pm | 700 WLW | Kansas City Royals |
| 15-Mar | 9:05pm | 700 WLW | Chicago Cubs |
| 17-Mar | 9:05pm | 700 WLW | Cleveland Guardians |
| 18-Mar | 4:05pm | 700 WLW | Oakland Athletics |
| 19-Mar | 4:10pm | 700 WLW | Milwaukee Brewers |
| 20-Mar | 4:05pm | 1360 WSAI | Los Angeles Angels |
| 22-Mar | 9:05pm | 700 WLW | San Diego Padres |
| 23-Mar | 9:05pm | 700 WLW | Seattle Mariners |
| 24-Mar | 4:10pm | 1360 WSAI | Arizona Diamondbacks |
| 25-Mar | 9:05pm | 700 WLW | Chicago White Sox |
| 26-Mar | 4:05pm | 700 WLW | Cleveland Guardians |
| 26-Mar | 4:10pm | None | Colorado Rockies |
The Diamond Sports Group (which owns Bally Sports) viability issue remains up in the air. The general news blackout over the past week about this situation may indicate that DSG, MLB and the bondholders are negotiating a “prepackaged” plan of reorganization, which could well result in a the bondholders setting up a new entity to distribute some or all of the 14 teams at issue. The new entity may well insist on renegotiating some or all of the contracts, plus make a new arrangements with MLB on streaming and on the blackout rule.
One report that I saw said that Billy Chambers, who had been chief financial offer at Sinclair (the parent of DSG), “started work this week with MLB in a new position as executive vice president for local media.” Reading between the lines, Chambers knows more than anybody else about the financial nuances of distributing baseball regionally, and MLB has hired him. One could be cynical that hiring a Sinclair guy to unwind this situation is a good idea, but on the other hand MLB likely has been working on this issue with Chambers for some time and may have come to trust him.
MLB has apparently been working on various contingency plans for the collapse of DSG for at least a year, and it has reportedly formed an “economic study committee” that will study the DSG failure and “examine revenue disparity among MLB clubs.”
As fans, we are therefore still at the “who knows” stage of this, but MLB has had enough time to come up with something that will get the games televised and some revenue generated. For obvious reasons, baseball cannot just allow a situation where any team has no local television contract.
Great commentary @OBE as usual.
Not my area.
Hopefully reds can hit reset button in 2024
I’m hopeful that I’ll just be able to subscribe directly from the MLB app this year. Here is a link to an article that I found interesting. It was written when the Apple deal was struck with the MLB. It has aged very well. Hopefully MLB figures this out soon, if 14 teams are in trouble now, all will be soon.
Hmm the link didn’t post, but it’s title is “Apple Seeks Home Run with MLB Streaming Deal” on Front Office Sports
This comes from a statement sent to FrontOfficeSports.com in which MLB broke down what they hope happens and their dedication to making sure MLB fans can still see their games.
“Our strong preference would be for the RSNs to be able to fulfill the agreements they signed with the clubs. However, we need to be prepared if the RSNs are unable to do so,” Noah Garden, MLB chief revenue officer, said in a statemnt to Front Office Sports. “This is a situation we have been monitoring for a long time. We have been contingency planning to ensure that no matter what happens with the RSNs, fans will be able to continue watching their favorite teams in their local market.
It may not be a surprise that MLB has been monitoring what has been happening with Bally Sports. Bankruptcy means that Bally Sports could stop millions of dollars in payments to MLB teams. It could also be used as a reason to break their contract with MLB freeing MLB to resell the rights or just offer in-market games directly to consumers through MLB.TV app.
Never trust Sinclair
It is strange as I get older , spring training is about the only sporting event i really look forward to anymore. i guess the games don’t really count so they are not as intense. they are the only games I don’t “Clete out” anymore. nfl, college basketaball, just too intense for me to watch the full game anymore. lol
I wonder if all 14 teams tied up in this mess have all slashed payroll in anticipation of losing a revenue stream. Maybe Doug knows, and I missed that article. We as Reds fans don’t like slashing payroll and fielding a team lacking in big league talent, but maybe its about protecting the franchise. Is it possible that Covid depleted the teams cash reserves, and another blow like this would force bankruptcy? Would MLB have enough cash reserves to bail out 14 teams at the same time?
Bally Sports (DSG) doesn’t have the really big teams, such as the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers and Cubs, which are the teams most likely to “spend more.”
They do have the Cardinals, Twins, Angels, Padres, Braves and Rangers. All of them have been reasonably aggressive in spending over the past couple of years. Cardinal fans, though, will tell you that the team needed to spend more on pitching this off-season.
MLB has known this was coming for a year or more, and it likely has a plan if DSG (in bankruptcy court) rejects its executory contracts with one or more of the franchises. Some other entity will pay the team something for the rights, or MLB will offer expanded streaming options, or some variation. MLB is going to ensure that most games, including those of the Reds, are televised. If they have to tax the Yankees, etc. to finance some of it, then that is what MLB will do.
I actually believe that Reds management got a heads-up from MLB during the lockout that Bally/DSG was in deep trouble, and that in part is what triggered the Winker/Saurez trade. After the labor issues were settled, another story appeared to the effect that MLB would partner with the NHL and NBA to buy out DSG, in lieu of a bankruptcy. That is apparently now a no-go.
I believe the extremely low payroll for 2023 is a function of three separate things:
1. Recovering COVID losses … the Reds didn’t cut payroll in 2021 enough to cover even their operating losses from 2020. Operating income (loss) excludes certain expenses that result in larger net losses.
2. The potential loss of RSN revenue in 2023 reportedly in the $55M to $60M range. Because of the number of teams involved, it could also affect revenue sharing receipt to a smaller degree. This is a defensive move on the Red’s part.
3. They understand the 2023 team is not competitive, and they can better apply payroll resources to augment future teams as their prospects graduate from the minors.
I don’t think the Reds are in any danger of bankruptcy. They could obtain loans to cover the lost RSN revenue. Of course, loans have to be repaid and would affect future payroll–it appears to me the Reds don’t want their future teams limited by COVID or the looming RSN crisis, as the future looks much brighter than the present.
No, while many in the group are “small market” teams. The list also include teams like The San Diego Padres, Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/ap-source-mlb-forms-economic-195624102.html
When evaluating how teams are doing, it’s best to look at trends than to focus on single years. Thus, I looked at the affected team’s payrolls, comparing their top payrolls prior to COVID with their payrolls for 2021, 2022, and projected for 2023 using COTS as the source.
Arizona, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Miami, Milwaukee, and Tampa are all operating below their prior top payroll marks (8 teams). Tampa is close to holding steady, but their payrolls are very low ($70M projected for 2023) and are still below pre-COVID levels.
Atlanta, Minnesota, LA Angels, and San Diego have boosted payroll post-COVID (4 teams).
St. Louis and Texas have higher payrolls in 2023 but had dips earlier–overall, they’ve held fairly steady (2 teams).