ESPN Tabs Another Padres Game For National Broadcast
When the San Diego Padres sported Major League Baseball's third-highest payroll, national attention followed. ESPN selected three Padres games for its flagship "Sunday Night Baseball" broadcasts in 2023.
That might not seem like a lot, but it's three more national broadcasts than the Padres could count on in most years.
As their fortunes faded last season, so too did the national spotlight. ESPN tabbed only one Padres game (Aug. 6 against the Los Angeles Dodgers) for a Sunday night broadcast over the season's final four months.
Flash forward to 2024. The Padres are not coming off a promising playoff run. Their star power has diminished; gone are slugger Juan Soto, closer Josh Hader and probably reigning National League Cy Young award winner Blake Snell, too. When CEO Erik Greupner reminded fans in December to look on the bright side of San Diego's offseason salary dump, the comments rang hollow.
At least ESPN hasn't given up on the Padres. The network previously announced it would air the season-opening "Seoul Series" games in South Korea against the Dodgers to its U.S. audience.
Now, it has selected the May 19 game against the Atlanta Braves for a "Sunday Night Baseball" broadcast, too.
In defense of Greupner — and the Worldwide Leader — the Padres' roster still boasts the kind of household names that are easier to sell to a national audience.
Fernando Tatis Jr. remains one of the game's bright young stars. Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts were already household names on the East Coast before relocating to San Diego. A star in Korea before coming to the United States, Ha-Seong Kim collected down-ballot MVP votes last year and won a Gold Glove award.
The Atlanta Braves boast their share of stars, too, so it's not hard to see what ESPN liked about the matchup. Whether the Padres are still a compelling watch by May remains to be seen.
