https://www.wsj.com/sports/baseball/diamond-sports-san-diego-padres-bankruptcy-tv-payroll-b82c2b81

The Padres Spent Big on Players—Then Lost the TV Deal That Helps Pay for
Them
San Diego has a huge player payroll of $250 million. This week, the
regional sports network that pays some of the bill stopped paying,
leaving the team in a bind.
By
Lindsey Adler
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and
Sarah Krouse
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Updated June 1, 2023 8:47 pm ET

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The San Diego Padres’ compulsion to spend lavishly to compete for
championships is colliding with the fragile economics of baseball’s
local broadcast deals. PHOTO: MANUEL BALCE CENETA/ASSOCIATED PRESS
The San Diego Padres may have just gone on baseball’s most poorly-timed
payroll spending spree.

The Padres have struck a string of marquee deals over the past two years
that have left them with a payroll of about $250 million this year. Five
players have long-term contracts worth at least $100 million.

But now, the Padres’ compulsion to spend lavishly to compete for
championships is colliding with the fragile economics of baseball’s
local broadcast deals, teeing the team up for a potential crisis.

This week, a stream of revenue that is crucial to paying those players
suddenly ran dry. Diamond Sports Group, which was set to pay the Padres
$52 million this year for the right to broadcast the team’s games on its
Bally’s regional sports networks, declined to make a contractually
obligated payment as it moves through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.

The move triggered a series of changes to where and how fans watch its
games and is altering how the Padres get paid for game broadcasts. The
team has instantly become a test case for how teams and leagues will
navigate the transition from lucrative agreements with regional sports
networks, funded by consumer cable bills, to new streaming deals that
are unlikely to generate anywhere close to the same amount of revenue.