The Braves don’t currently have a TV partner, as we explained earlier this week. The owners of FanDuel Sports Network have made a last-ditch attempt to carry the nine teams, and boy is it a doozy.
Last week, nine MLB teams terminated their contracts with Fanduel Sports Network’s owners after a roughly four-year saga including non-payments, threats of non-payment, threats of bankruptcy in an attempt to lower payments, general non-good faith dealings, and nearly a year of bankruptcy hearings. Now Main Street Sports Group is back, offering those teams three-year contracts to own their broadcast rights if they can manage to find a new owner for FanDuel Sports Network. Yeah, that’s not sweetening the deal.
This offer will almost certainly be rejected by the Braves. And the nine MLB teams’ 2026 seasons, including the Braves, will definitely be seen somewhere. Where that is, exactly, is to be determined. MLB Media (via MLB.tv) is in the driver’s seat right now to pick up those teams’ rights. Hey, guess who bought the rights to sell and distribute MLB.tv? Another Mickey Mouse outfit named ESPN, that’s who.
Evan Drellich’s piece is behind a paywall, but it’s worth the read if you’re curious about how these broadcast rights could be made available. It includes this note.
ESPN can newly broadcast all the teams under MLB’s production umbrella — including any that soon jump over. ESPN isn’t expected to start actually airing those teams on its services until 2027, however. That sets up a two-year experiment for ESPN where the famed network will effectively also be a local broadcaster.
Spring Training starts in 37 days. The Braves’ options include starting their own network with a streaming option, making Gray TV work, finding another broadcast partner for 2026 and possibly beyond, the fallback MLB Media/MLB.tv/ESPN option, or involvement with FanDuel/Main Street/ex-Diamond’s shenanigans. I know which one I’m rooting for. We will keep you updated as, well… 37 days to Spring Training.
