The impending death of Bally Sports

[gehringer_2]

2 hours ago, oblong said:

I suspected when they made the changes earlier this year and the vagueness of his status that he is on some kind of contract/game by game basis. They will call him when they need him. 

Also possible the event he is working may have been set up a long time ago - e.g - last year.

[Crazy Cat Gentleman]

3 hours ago, gehringer_2 said:

Also possible the event he is working may have been set up a long time ago - e.g - last year.

I wondered that last night myself. I haven't been watching today's game at all closely, but I saw a bit of him in the booth with Selleck. I guess that could well have been set up prior to the season, too. I assume it would be cheaper to bring him back for it since they would probably have to pay him even if they reassign it.

I did a DuckDuckGo search on his name and got a link to a LinkedIn post he made. it's since been deleted, but DDG must have it still cached.

Quote

Excited to share a new update - I'm continuing part-time with FanDuel Sports Network while expanding heavily into more freelance videography, video…

there's no date on it, but I imagine it was from shortly before the season, after he was let go from full-time work.

[tiger2022]

I use Sportsurge.to or Streameast to stream the games.  Sometimes it's slow or stops, and you have to put up with and close out annoying betrivers pop ups ads before you actually get the game to stream, but it doesn't cost anything. 

Edited August 24, 2025 by tiger2022

[chasfh]

Poor streaming quality and annoying ads sounds like a cost to me.

[Tigeraholic1]

Can't remember who suggested it but: TheTVApp.TO is great quality. Watched the appleTV game friday and Lions game saturday and the stream was flawless. No pop ups or anything.

[tiger2022]

10 hours ago, chasfh said:

Poor streaming quality and annoying ads sounds like a cost to me.

Usually once you get it going it's okay.  The ads are just at the beginning.  

[Motor City Sonics]

11 hours ago, chasfh said:

Poor streaming quality and annoying ads sounds like a cost to me.

Horrible streaming.   Let the stream play for about 4 or 5 minutes and the audio and video are completely out of synch and you have to exit and go back in.   Plus where there is no ad to fill the time they have this title card with sports sound effects that just keeps playing.   Um, why not 30 second or 60 second or 15 second highlights?   

[Edman85]

Bumpity Bump Bump

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6948445/2026/01/07/fanduel-sports-network-renegotiate-payments-cardinals/

[RedRamage]

12 minutes ago, Edman85 said:

Bumpity Bump Bump

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6948445/2026/01/07/fanduel-sports-network-renegotiate-payments-cardinals/

I found this part interesting:

Main Street and other traditional RSNs promise teams a fixed amount per season for their TV rights, typically tens of millions for most teams. Teams carried by MLB, however, are not promised a fixed fee by the league. Instead, MLB pays them whatever their telecasts wind up bringing in, via streaming subscriptions and traditional TV distribution fees.

So based on this a small market team still get small market media money from MLB. It's an interesting dynamic because there's no danger of MLB "missing payments" to teams because it's not a lump sum, it's a percentage of what MLB gets. It also incentivizes teams to have a better product because that would result in better subscriptions and more money.

However that uncertainty means teams might be much more reluctant to commit big to a roster if there's not guarantee they'll get x-amount of dollars in media money. I think it also fails to recognize that big market teams will get big market media money. I still think some level of pooling of media money is necessary to balance the league.

[chasfh]

I am hoping the Tigers go with MLB and we get to have one year of no on-screen prop betting odds before ESPN brings them all back for whenever the next season is.

[RedRamage]

30 minutes ago, chasfh said:

I am hoping the Tigers go with MLB and we get to have one year of no on-screen prop betting odds before ESPN brings them all back for whenever the next season is.

I mean, I guess it pays the bills and if the on-screen notifications are minimal I guess I can accept them... but I mostly agree with you that not having them at all would be best.

[chasfh]

3 minutes ago, RedRamage said:

I mean, I guess it pays the bills and if the on-screen notifications are minimal I guess I can accept them... but I mostly agree with you that not having them at all would be best.

Do you like placing the occasional and perfectly legal prop bet?

[Tiger337]

4 minutes ago, RedRamage said:

I mean, I guess it pays the bills and if the on-screen notifications are minimal I guess I can accept them... but I mostly agree with you that not having them at all would be best.

They aren't minimal.  They are pervasive.  It downgrades the viewing experience for me.  

[RedRamage]

29 minutes ago, chasfh said:

Do you like placing the occasional and perfectly legal prop bet?

No, I do not. I'm well aware of my less than stellar will-power when it comes to things that can become addicting quickly, so I don't even occasionally bet.

[RedRamage]

28 minutes ago, Tiger337 said:

They aren't minimal.  They are pervasive.  It downgrades the viewing experience for me.  

Right, I worded that wrong. What I should have said was: "IF they are minimal I could live with them as it helps pay the bills." But as you said they aren't, and they are pervasive and they do downgrade the experience.

Look at the uniform ads, for example. Especially for the Tigers the Meijer logo is very minimal. It doesn't stand out at all. It doesn't (at least for me) effect the quality of the game, so... have at it. Bring in some more money that hopefully gets spent on the team. (Yeah, I'm probably giving Ilitch too much credit there.)

[chasfh]

7 hours ago, RedRamage said:

No, I do not. I'm well aware of my less than stellar will-power when it comes to things that can become addicting quickly, so I don't even occasionally bet.

Good for you. And your family.

[oblong]

10 hours ago, RedRamage said:

No, I do not. I'm well aware of my less than stellar will-power when it comes to things that can become addicting quickly, so I don't even occasionally bet.

For me it’s not about the money even. I would never, and have never, bet more than I would reasonably consider a fun night out. It’s never done to “make money “. But I hate losing more than I love winning so I guess that’s a plus. I quit doing NCAA brackets and squares because it stresses me out. If I do squares I let my wife handle it and I forget about it.  The only thing I do now is a $100 buy in on a football league for college and pros. You get $10K in money and make your bets. Every two weeks you have to wager at least half your money. There’s 200 people in the league with mid season prizes. I only do it as a reason to watch football. I spend about 7 seconds making my bet. Last year I made my money back, finished 9th This year I was out when the Lions lost to Pittsburgh.  I’m not bragging.  It was luck. 

[Edman85]

I do not bet with sports books. The house wins there, and if the house doesn't win, they cut off the people who do win. I do small pools with friends, primarily for two reasons. I can usually come out ahead there because of my sports knowledge and analytics ability. Not always. It does add some low stakes and gets friends interested in things. No more than a couple hundred bucks down in a given year, and I usually come out on top. It does get frustrating in football season when out with friends and they are so concerned about their parlay. Gambling addiction is a scourge that wrecks a lot of lives.

[Tiger337]

I have one fantasy league that I've been in for about 20 years.  Everybody puts in $200 at the beginning of the season.  The money is divided among the top 3 in the league at the end of the season.  It makes the season more fun, but that's the extent of my gambling activities.  I agree it's good to stay out of professional gambling.  It is designed to screw you and it feeds off addictions.    

[CMRivdogs]

I learned about the pitfalls of gambling at the age of 12 when I bet at least $10 on the Yankees in the 1964 World Series. Of I followed that up with a $50 bet with a "buddy" on the old Frito commercial, "Bet you can't eat just one". My folks got wind of that one and tried to sabotage during a week a Boy Scout Camp. We decided to call off the bet about 6 months in.

I thin the last time I placed a bet was in a Las Vegas sports book. All my horses ran well until the final stretch..  

[Shinzaki]

I occasionally watch hockey on ESPN+.  Teams that aren't originating their streams via Fan duel are so much less irritating to watch.  The constant interruptions during the Wings games to update the betting odds are annoying no matter how cute Daniela is

[IdahoBert]

I am totally boring. I’ve never had success betting so I’ve never had a chance to get addicted. I also don’t drink or smoke or use drugs or buy sex… anymore. 

[Dan Gilmore]

…or any less?

[Motor City Sonics]

Instead of Ghost Runners and Golden At Bats and Outfield Play Lines, maybe you should focus on how your fans will actually see their teams, Rob.    

[Motor City Sonics]

11 hours ago, Tiger337 said:

I have one fantasy league that I've been in for about 20 years.  Everybody puts in $200 at the beginning of the season.  The money is divided among the top 3 in the league at the end of the season.  It makes the season more fun, but that's the extent of my gambling activities.  I agree it's good to stay out of professional gambling.  It is designed to screw you and it feeds off addictions.    

Three years ago when sports gambling was first legal, I used to bet OVER on NHL games that were 5.5 on goal totals.     I did very well doing that actually, but only bet $10 at a time and would always cash out when it went over $50 and start over again.  I probably won about $400 during that season, but I must have not been the only one doing that because 5.5 was a pretty rare number after that.     I bet $50 on an NFL playoff 5-leg parlay and won and I think I won about $200 or so on that one, but that's the end of it for me.    It takes enjoyment out of the game.  I am trying to unwind while I watch, not get MORE stressed out.