The Seattle Mariners are reportedly set to make a major move in the sports television world. According to reports, the M’s are poised to take 100 percent control of the ROOT Sports Northwest Network that airs their games.
Reports of the rumored Mariners takeover first emerged Saturday via the Seattle Times. Ryan Divish and Adam Jude authored the report.
“The organization’s financial outlook, already a hot-button topic for a fan base growing increasingly frustrated by the team’s lack of spending, will become further clouded Jan. 1 when the Mariners’ ownership group takes complete control of its regional sports network, ROOT Sports Northwest.”
Stanton told the publication that the team’s “top priority is to ensure all Mariners fans have access to watch Mariners games from their home each night.”
It’s yet to be determined which broadcast network will air the games this coming season after the takeover. It’s entirely possible that the Mariners could take a page out of what NBA franchises are doing right now and air the games locally.
The move comes as a response to Warner Bros. Discovery’s choice to withdraw from the local sports TV business. WBD made this decision last February.
According to the report by the Seattle Times, the Mariners owner met with ROOT Sports to discuss the station’s future last Tuesday. He reportedly promised them that a decision would be made by mid-January but couldn’t promise future employment, per the publication.
The RSN business continues to get murkier as we tip into the year 2024. This is just another example of a long line of expected maneuvers coming down the pipe.
About Chris Novak
Chris Novak has been talking and writing about sports ever since he can remember. Previously, Novak wrote for and managed sites in the SB Nation network for nearly a decade from 2013-2022