SAN DIEGO — Bally Sports San Diego's parent company made its first rights fee payment to the Padres ahead of Wednesday's 11:59 p.m. deadline, assuring its broadcast of opening day against Colorado Rockies would go off without a hitch.
Diamond Sports Group, which operates as Bally, had filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month as it looks to eliminate more than $8 billion of the company's debut and had entered the grace period after missing a mid-March payment.
Wednesday's payment covers half the season. The next payment is due in May.
Diamond inherited its 20-year, $1.2 billion cable deal with the Padres, which runs through 2032, when parent company Sinclair Broadcast Group purchased Fox Sports Networks for $10.6 billion in 2019.
Its financial trouble stems from losing 22 million subscribers and $810 in revenue over the last four years, due in large part to cord-cutting and distributors like YouTube TV and Hulu+ Live TV dropping Bally.
While the embattled company had assured that it would continue to bring games to fans amid its bankruptcy proceedings, Major League Baseball had been positioning itself to take over broadcasts should Diamond default on any of its contracts with teams.
With Wednesday's deadline met at the 11th hour, the Padres announced that their 2023 broadcast schedule will include 155 games on Bally, beginning with Thursday's opener.
National broadcasts of games will include April 7 at the Atlanta Braves (AppleTV+), April 9 at the Braves (ESPN), May 7 vs. the Dodgers (ESPN), May 13 at the Dodgers (FOX Sports), May 26 at the New York Yankees (AppleTV+), June 17 vs. the Tampa Bay Rays (FOX Sports) and July 23 at the Detroit Tigers (Peacock).
The Bally Sports Spanish-language broadcast schedule will feature a minimum of 72 home games, beginning with opening day, while all 162 games will be available on the radio in English and Spanish.
English broadcasts will be available on 97.3 The Fan, with the Padres' radio network expanding its reach into Temecula (KXFG 92.9), Palm Springs (KKGX 920 AM and 99.1 FM) and Las Vegas (98.5 HD2 The Fan).
Spanish radio broadcasts will return to the Padres' Spanish flagship station, XEMO-AM La Poderosa 860.
