The Milwaukee Brewers are saying ‘goodbye’ to television broadcasts on Bally Sports Wisconsin.
So now what?
Beginning in 2025, Major League Baseball will produce and distribute local games for the Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Guardians, and Minnesota Twins. The new arrangement, according to a statement from the League, will give fans more options to watch their favorite teams on television or to stream digitally.
With the change, Brewers President of Business Operations, Rick Schlesinger is focused on working with MLB to produce a best-in-class broadcast of Milwaukee Brewers baseball.
“From our perspective, the first thing is ‘what’s best for the fans’?” Schlesinger noted. “How can we get our telecast to the broadest audience…and frankly, just having more ownership, control and input into a really important part of our brand which is the 145 or so telecasts every year.”
WHERE WILL I BE ABLE TO SEE THE GAMES?
Fans used to archaic blackout restrictions, the clunky Bally Sports app, and contract disputes with streaming services, won’t have to worry any longer.
According to Schlesinger, “We’ll have the Brewers on cable and satellite next year. If you want a streaming product, we’re gonna have a tremendously high-energy high-technology streaming service subscription-based product for fans.”
Don’t expect a 24-hour channel just yet. Schlesinger noted that ‘Brewers TV’ will start with game broadcasts, but ancillary programming will likely be added over time.
WHAT ABOUT THE BROADCAST CREW?
According to Schlesinger, they aren’t going anywhere.
“All of our broadcasters are Brewers employees, so everybody is coming back. We think we have some of the most talented television broadcasters,” Schlesinger said. “What I want people to see next year is the familiar faces and familiar voices.”
WILL THERE BE A PRE-GAME SHOW AND POST-GAME SHOW?
The short answer is “yes”, but unlike the actual game broadcast team, not all of the pre and post-game show hosts and co-hosts are Brewers employees.
“Obviously, they’ve been part of the Brewers family, so we’ll figure out specifics on staffing pre and post, but familiarity with our team and our product and our broadcast is important,” Schlesinger explained.
IS THIS A ONE-YEAR TRIAL OR A LONG-TERM PLAY?
It’s the latter, according to Schlesinger. “We think this is a long-term play. We think this is the future of local media for Major League Baseball.”
WHAT ABOUT THE MILWAUKEE BUCKS?
The Milwaukee Bucks television broadcasts will continue to air on Bally Sports Wisconsin for the 2024-25 season.
