Diamond Sports Group, the largest owner of regional sports networks, could be down to broadcasting only one Major League Baseball team's games next season.
During a hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston on Wednesday, the operator of the Bally Sports regional sports networks indicated it will cut loose the seven teams it has under contract for the 2025 season.
As part of its reorganization plan, Diamond plans to void the contracts of the Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays and to attempt to rework the deals of the five franchises that are partial owners of their regional sports networks — the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals.
The Cleveland Guardians, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers have contracts that expired at the end of the regular season.
That would leave the Atlanta Braves as the only franchise whose contract would be unchanged.
Attorneys for Diamond said during the hearing that the company has delivered proposals to the 11 teams that are out of contract, rejected deals or are joint ventures.
Diamond Sports has been in Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the Southern District of Texas since it filed for protection in March 2023. The company said in a financial filing last year that it had debt of $8.67 billion.
“Today marks an important step forward for Diamond with the filing of a baseline plan to enable us to emerge from bankruptcy as a viable, go-forward business before year-end," Diamond Sports said in a statement. "We firmly believe that through our linear and digital offerings we have created the best economic and fan-friendly engine for all of our team partners.”
Diamond attorney Andrew Goldman said during the 30-minute hearing that talks remain ongoing with all teams.
MLB attorney James Bromley said he was surprised about the reorganization plan and said they were “sandbagged” since they only learned about it less than two hours before the start of the hearing.
“We have no information about what is being done,” Bromley said. “We’ve had no opportunity to review and now we’re in front of the court and being asked to make our comments."
Over the past two seasons, Major League Baseball has had to take over the broadcasts of the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies after agreements could not be reached.
Goldman also said during the hearing that Diamond is “on a path to getting a new naming rights partner, which is a big development for the company as well as a commercial agreement with one or more streaming partners with respect to the digital rights that the company will possess.”
Diamond also has the rights to 13 NBA and eight NHL teams.
Judge Christopher Lopez has scheduled a follow-up session for Oct. 9 with a final hearing on the reorganization plan scheduled for Nov. 14.
Diamond Sports Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group bought the regional sports networks from The Walt Disney Co. for nearly $10 billion in 2019. Disney was required by the Department of Justice to sell the networks for its acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s film and television assets to be approved.
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Bally reporter, Hanna Yates, broadcasts her pregame with fans standing behind her waiting for autographs before the start of a baseball game between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha's police chief said Wednesday that an officer followed protocol when he shot a fleeing, armed Nebraska man eight times this weekend, killing him.
Steven Phipps, 22, is the second Black man killed by an Omaha officer in the past two months.
Omaha police Chief Todd Schmaderer told reporters that police pulled Phipps over for expired plates during a traffic stop Saturday and he ran away. Two officers chased him. Schmaderer said Phipps had a gun, which he legally owned, as he scaled a fence.
The firearm was pointed at Officer Noah Zendejas as Phipps fell from the fence, and body camera video stills show the gun in his right hand as he fell, police said. Zendejas, who is Hispanic and has worked for Omaha police for three years, then shot Phipps. Police released a compilation of video and audio from the shooting.
Schmaderer said Zendejas first spotted a heavy weight in Phipps' hoodie as he ran.
Steven Phipps' aunt, Angela Phipps, was with the family when police showed them the full video and audio from the shooting, which wasn’t all released at Wednesday's news conference. She said she heard Phipps repeatedly say “don't shoot me” after he hit the ground while holding his hands and one leg up “like a Heisman pose but laying on the ground.”
But Omaha Police Lt. Neal Bonacci said that isn't accurate because the body camera video shows most of the shots were fired while Phipps was in midair. Bonacci said Phipps did say something after he landed, but that was after he had already been shot. He said Phipps didn't drop the gun until after he landed.
Asked by reporters whether Phipps' gun was accidentally pointed at officers because he was falling, Schmaderer said that was “entirely possible.” But he questioned why Phipps still had possession of the gun and had not thrown it to the side. Schmaderer said Zendejas was also concerned about the risk to a public transit stop nearby.
“We really don't know what Mr. Phipps' intent was,” Schmaderer said. “But when that gun started to be pointed to him and he had it in his hand, that officer's authorized at that point to defend himself.”
Zendejas has not previously been disciplined for any use-of-force violations, Bonacci said.
Police said an autopsy shows Phipps was not shot in the back, and they showed a photo of his back to the family. A copy of the autopsy was not immediately provided to reporters.
Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine will review the investigation and decide whether to file charges, and the shooting will later be reviewed by a grand jury under Nebraska law. Kleine’s office did not immediately say when he will announce his decision on any charges.
Phipps' family, who said his father was killed four years ago in California, is distraught over losing him. They said Phipps got off work shortly before the shooting and had his little brother in the car with him.
“I’m so broken that I don’t know what to say. It was just wrong. It was wrong,” said Gail Phipps, his aunt.
Schmaderer said that had Phipps stayed in the car and told officers he had a gun, “he would have been issued a ticket for expired plates.” But his family said he had tried that in the past and was still arrested for having a concealed weapon.
Schmaderer pointed to a recent rise in the number of guns officers are finding in the community and said it's important for people to follow police orders.
“When somebody runs from a law enforcement officer, they’re trained to go after them,” he said. “We’re attempting to reduce crime. The minute I say as chief, ‘We’re no longer going to go after law violators,’ is the minute crime starts going up.”
Last month Schmaderer fired another officer who fatally shot an unarmed man while serving a no-knock warrant, a policy that has since been suspended in the city.
Omaha Police Officer Adam Vail was part of a SWAT team serving a search warrant during a drug and firearms investigation Aug. 28 when he fired the single shot that killed 37-year-old Cameron Ford, prosecutors said. Vail said Ford, who was Black, charged at him without his hands visible.
Kleine declined to charge the officer, but Schmaderer said an internal investigation found Vail violated department procedures.
Schmaderer said he is working to rebuild trust with residents after both shootings and planned to attend another community meeting Wednesday afternoon.
Ballentine reported from Jefferson City, Missouri.
Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer speaks during a news conference on the fatal shooting of Steven Phipps Jr., 22, by police, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, at Omaha Police Headquarters in Omaha, Neb. (Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald via AP)
Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer, left, speaks during a news conference on the fatal shooting of Steven Phipps Jr., 22, by police, next to Omaha Mayor Jean Stother, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, at Omaha Police Headquarters in Omaha, Neb.(Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald via AP)
Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer speaks during a news conference on the fatal shooting of Steven Phipps Jr., 22, by police, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024, at Omaha Police Headquarters in Omaha, Neb. (Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald via AP)
