The Brewers' Sal Frelick steals second base as the Detroit Tigers' Trey Sweeney can't field the throw during the sixth inning on April 15 in Milwaukee. (AP file photo)

The Milwaukee Brewers, Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays said Monday they will have their local television broadcasts produced and distributed by Major League Baseball this season.

The six clubs — along with the Detroit Tigers, Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels — terminated their deals after the Main Street Sports Group, which operates the regional FanDuel Sports Network stations, did not make scheduled rights payments.

The Tigers, Braves and Angels still have not made a decision about their local coverage plans.

“The Atlanta Braves are aware of the reports regarding Main Street Sports Group. While disappointed with this development, we have been actively preparing for this outcome and are well on our way towards launching a new era in Braves broadcasting,” the team said in a statement.

MLB will produce broadcasts for at least 13 teams this season. It also added the Washington Nationals and Seattle Mariners during the offseason.

“Our focus, particularly given the point in the calendar, is to maximize the revenue that’s available to the clubs, whether that’s MLB Media or third party,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said last month. “The clubs have control over the timing. They can make a decision to move to MLB Media because of the contractual status now. I think that what’s happening right now clubs are evaluating their alternatives. Obviously they’ve made significant payroll commitments already and they’re evaluating the alternatives to find the best revenue source for the year and the best outlet in terms of providing quality broadcasts to their fans.”

MLB has touted expanded market reach when it takes over production of teams due to a combination of being on local cable systems, satellite and direct-to-consumer streaming.

Diamond Sports Group was the largest owner of regional sports networks when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March 2023.

At the time of the filing, Diamond operated 19 networks under the Bally Sports banner and had the rights to 42 professional teams (14 baseball, 16 NBA and 12 NHL).

The networks emerged from bankruptcy proceedings last March under the Main Street Sports Group with its networks rebranded as FanDuel Sports Network. However, the networks are on the verge of insolvency and going out of business if a new majority owner or investors are not found.

Main Street currently has 15 owned and operated networks under the FanDuel banner with the rights to 20 pro teams: 13 NBA and seven NHL.

The NBA and NHL teams have been crafting contingency plans if Main Street suddenly goes out of business, an increasingly possible scenario over the past three weeks even though the company has committed to carrying hockey and basketball through the end of the regular season.

“FanDuel Sports Network is continuing to broadcast NBA and NHL games, and we appreciate the leagues’ engagement in ongoing discussions on our go-forward plans,” a Main Street Sports Group spokesperson said in a statement. “We appreciate the relationships we have had with these MLB partners and their fans over many years, and we wish them the best.”

MLB took over broadcasts of the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks during the 2023 season and the Colorado Rockies in 2024. It added the Cleveland Guardians and the Minnesota Twins last season.

Manfred said last month that local media provides more than 20% of industry revenue.

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AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum and Sports Writer Steve Megargee in Milwaukee contributed to this report.

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