Another MN Twins Television Shakeup Incoming

We aren’t even through the first year of Twins TV, the MLB + Minnesota Twins produced television broadcast that took over for the bankruptcy debacle that was Diamond Sports Group (parent company of Bally-turned-FanDuel Sports North) created.

Now, and the Twins have a very well-produced streaming product on Twins TV. It was available for $99 at the beginning of the season, and the price has dropped since (as has the quality of the product).

Major League Baseball continues to try and figure out a path forward. That includes expansion, realignment, and ultimately production. New discussions between the league and ESPN could shake up Minnesota even further.

ESPN coming for MLB, Minnesota Twins

Major League Baseball and ESPN have been working through a muddy separation for a while now. The sides have also been trying to create a new path forward. The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand provided an update on Thursday.

Major League Baseball and ESPN have a framework agreement that would give the network the exclusive rights to sell all out-of-market regular-season games digitally and in-market games for five clubs over the next three years, sources briefed on the discussions told The Athletic.

ESPN would continue to broadcast around 30 regular-season games, but not “Sunday Night Baseball.” ESPN would move to a different night during the week. The games on the network would remain exclusive, meaning viewers would only be able to watch these matchups through ESPN. The agreement would begin next season.

Under the framework of an agreement between MLB and ESPN, ESPN would have MLB.TV as part of its direct-to-consumer offering. It is not fully clear yet if out-of-market subscribers who pay for the package through cable or other linear subscription would still be able to receive MLB.TV that way.

For digital consumers, fans are likely to need an ESPN direct-to-consumer subscription to go along with MLB.TV. The overall new pricing for MLB.TV is not yet decided, but is expected to be similar or slightly cheaper than the current $29.99 per month rate.

If the deal is signed, ESPN will have the full rights to in- and out-of-market games for five teams. The Cleveland Guardians, San Diego Padres, Minnesota Twins, Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies are the clubs under MLB control. Fans would likely need to subscribe to ESPN either directly or through an operator, and then, for an added price, they would be able to receive their local teams’ games.

The Athletic

Alright, deep breath, that’s a lot. It appears that this shift would put an end to the idea of TwinsTV. Instead, you will presumably need the ESPN direct-to-consumer product ($29.99/month) as well as a subscription to MLB.TV. With the partnership having a baseball focus, there will be pricing structure changes to MLB.TV as well.

What this does sound like is that fans will be asked to pay MORE than they currently are. TwinsTV is offered at $19.99/month, and initially cost $99.99 for the season (with bundle options as well). This suggests fans will need to pay something of that freight, as well as the $29.99/month for the ESPN service.

Assuming something like an all-in cost of $45/month, fans are looking at a price of $360 for eight months of Minnesota Twins baseball. That’s more than triple the cost of what TwinsTV has run fans in year one.

Baseball’s regional network model has been a failing business for years and it’s why the Twins decided to “right-size” their payroll, while struggling to figure out better options in 2024. ESPN isn’t getting involved to let anything fail, and fans probably aren’t going to have a choice.

Related: Pohlads Avoided Sale of MN Twins to Have New Investors Pay Off Debt

Ideally, the new partnership will represent an infusion of cash for the Twins. Unfortunately, the Pohlad family is already a revenue sharing recipient and they routinely pocket those checks without increasing payroll. That hasn’t stopped them from offloading debt into the franchise, and they recently announced they couldn’t even complete a sale correctly.

Baseball continues to evolve, and Rob Manfred will need to hope he’s getting this right as his time comes to an end. His term ends January 25, 2029, at which point it is expected he will retire.