So we all knew this was coming, but it does seem to have surprised everyone that the Chicago Cubs announced their TV deal and that it will begin next season. If you’ve missed the news, here it is.
Sources: #Cubs will go their own way in a television venture starting in late 2019, ending partnership with NBC Sports Chicago, Bulls, White Sox and Blackhawkshttps://t.co/vc8sD0Arz7 via @MLBBruceLevine pic.twitter.com/CKSfecwJmi
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) August 27, 2018
The gist of this is, in October of 2019, so after the regular season, the Cubs will launch their own channel. This would severe the ties they have with NBC Sports Chicago, and their 20% stake (the Chicago White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks also have a 20% stake). In fairness, the deal was set to expire in 2019.
As Bruce Levine wrote on 670 The Score, the Cubs presently earn $750,000 per game that is televised on NBC Sports Chicago, and $200,000 on WGN or ABC. That said, the Cubs have “up to” 84 games on NBCSC, earning a cool $63 million. Conversely they have a total of 45 games on WGN or ABC, bringing in another $9,000,000. It’s not horrible to have $72 million coming into your organization through local television contracts.
In retrospect, the Angels, Astros, Giants, Mets, Padres, and Yankees had all received billion-dollar TV contracts. The Los Angeles Dodgers deal takes the cake, coming in at $8 billion.
But not all TV deals are created equal, and when leaping into the cable TV game, you can get burned.
As you read this, nearly half of LA cannot watch Dodgers games since DirecTV and Time Warner cannot agree to terms. With Cubs fans in the outskirts of the Chicago viewing area already having issues watching games – regardless if they are viewing on TV or streaming services – a flub like this would be disastrous. Chicago has already gone through the Blackhawks home game blackouts, which severely hurt their popularity. If fans weren’t able to watch the Cubs on TV, there could be a huge hit to the Cubs fanbase.
But to ensure that the Cubs deal goes off without a hitch, they hired Mike McCarthy.
No, not that MIke McCarthy… the Mike McCarthy that was the former CEO of MSG Network. MSG and MSG+ currently televises 500 live sporting events as well as critically-acclaimed original programming. The network carries New York Knicks, Rangers, Islanders, Giants, Liberty, Red Bull, Cosmos, New Jersey Devils, and Buffalo Sabers. Mike is considered one of the industry’s best and most respected executives in the media world, signaling yet another high-profile hire by the Cubs which the Ricketts opted to go with the absolute best and most qualified.
So what does this mean for the Cubs?
The Cubs Productions media team has been producing great original content. Whether it was following Willson Contreras and his family through the All Star game festivities, Kyle Schwarber’s offseason workouts and transformation, to the recent inquiry on if Javy can tag Javy, and even longer form content like the special on Kerry Wood’s 20 strikeout game.
Perhaps a Cubs channel would allow for more long form Cubs Productions content? Wouldn’t it be great to have an Ernie Banks documentary created in that special way Cubs Productions seems to do in all their content? What about a Ron Santo flick? Or something dedicated to that ‘69 team?
Moreover, this is an opportunity to play great games of the past, bringing new fans closer to the greats of yesteryear. Maybe revisit highlights of the deal that brought “The Red Baron” Rick Sutcliffe to the Cubs and the remarkable season he had once he came. Maybe revisit the Cubs of the mid-1980’s, how Ryne Sandberg became one of the game’s greats and how Andre Dawson’s blank check led to an MVP award.
Not only does it open up those avenues of classic programming or documentaries, it also allows the team to open up revenue streams outside their telecasts. Broadcasting other sporting events or higher-profile programming brings in ad revenue to the organization. All of this means more money running through the coffers of the organization, which helps build better facilities, hire the best people, retain their people, and eventually bring in or keep the best men on the field.
The Cubs will still need to operate within the confines of the MLB and any labor laws, and there are repercussions for continuingly running over luxury tax lines.
Ultimately though, the Cubs TV deal offers Cubs fans one place to watch the Cubs. While the hodgepodge of channels and partners has worked for the organization, there has always been confusion on where to watch the game. Even with multiple outlets telling fans where to watch games, fans could never be sure if the game was on CSN, ABC, WGN, or somewhere else. This eliminates that confusion completely.
