Why Cubs, White Sox fans' demand for spring-training broadcasts isn't being met

It’s that time of year when baseball fans long to watch baseball. They see cloudy skies out their windows and seek sun-drenched fields on their screens. Though they’re blessed to have meaningful games this spring, thanks to the World Baseball Classic, any kind of exhibition game would suffice.

But for Cubs and White Sox fans, their menu is limited. The Cubs’ Marquee Sports Network is scheduled to air 11 of the team’s 32 spring-training games, and the Sox’ Chicago Sports Network is slated to carry nine of 33. Combined, our regional sports networks — which are subsidized by those who watch them — will broadcast less than one-third of scheduled spring games.

Fans’ frustration is evident on social media and in my inbox. Just point a couple of cameras at the field and put the game on the air, they say, arguing that anything live beats a supposed “Cubs Classic” or a replay of a Windy City Bulls game.

Their arguments are certainly valid. The Cubs and Sox created their networks to air games and profit from them. When the Cubs launched Marquee in 2020, they put 28 of 34 spring-training games on the air. As recently as 2024, the network carried 27 of 35 games. Two of them were the broadcast of the opposing team, but that’s a standard practice for spring road games.

Last year, the Cubs aired 17 games, but the network sent a crew to Japan for two exhibitions and the Tokyo Series, so we’ll cut them a break. Their broadcast schedule this year, though, is an example of the financial pressures that most RSNs are feeling — at least those that are left.

Cord-cutting and the proliferation of streaming have damaged the industry’s business model. You’ll recall that Marquee eliminated its general manager position and slashed its digital staff in December and that CHSN laid off digital and editorial staff in September.

The Sox are actually broadcasting more spring games than the half-dozen they used to air annually on NBC Sports Chicago. But three are other teams’ broadcasts, and fans expected more from a new team-owned network.

So what gives? The bottom line, industry insiders say, is money. There isn’t enough to be made, only to be spent. The cost is high for producing games in which the starters might not play past the fifth inning, if at all. The games don’t command the advertising dollars to justify an extensive broadcast schedule.

But that hasn’t stopped other teams, some of which might surprise you. Two that won’t are the Dodgers and Yankees, who live happily in their high-end RSN neighborhoods. The Dodgers are set to televise 30 of their 32 games on SportsNet LA, while the Yankees scheduled 12 games on YES Network and another 14 on the Gotham Sports App.

Here’s the surprise: The Padres, who are no longer part of an RSN and have their games produced and distributed by MLB, will air a team-record 21 spring games, all for free. And the Cardinals, who this year joined the Padres among the 14 clubs under MLB’s management, will stream 16 spring games for free, half of which will be available over the air.

That’s a great way teams can appease fans looking for spring games: put them on broadcast TV. Marquee did that — once, in 2024, on Weigel Broadcasting’s The U (WCIU-Channel 26). Though CHSN had to remove its OTA signal in Comcast markets to gain carriage on the cable provider last year, it will simulcast the Sox’ final two spring games on The U.

But the Padres and Cardinals’ coverage makes that of the Cubs and Sox look bad. Yes, times are tough for RSNs, and Marquee and CHSN have to make choices. But that’s the key here. Our RSNs are choosing less spring coverage. It might make financial sense, but it comes with a reputational cost.