After two long days of hearings, more than nine hours on Wednesday then a session Thursday that lasted until shortly after 6:30 p.m., federal bankruptcy judge Christopher Lopez ruled that Diamond Sports Group must pay Major League Baseball teams the full value of their contracts to televise individual teams.
Diamond, parent company of 19 regional sports networks including Cardinals and Blues telecaster Bally Sports Midwest, had filed for bankruptcy. The case heard in Houston by Lopez involved four teams — the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Guardians, Texas Rangers and Minnesota Twins. Payments have been late, and not in full, to those clubs.