The Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals have settled their long lasting legal dispute over televised broadcasting on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN).
With the 2025 Major League (MLB) season opener around the corner, Nationals games will continue airing exclusively on the network.
After the season the Nats will be free to shop their televised game rights, selling them to any network they choose.
With that, both clubs agreed to drop or dismiss all litigation related to MASN media rights.
The dispute dates back to 2004 when MLB purchased the Montreal Expos, and relocated them to Washington D.C. where they became the Nationals.
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At the time the Orioles objected because they feared the Nationals would impact their television market revenue.
As result MASN was born allowing games for both teams to be telecast.
The Orioles initally owned 90 percent of the network, which was to be dropped to 67 percent by 2032, leaving the Nats with a 33 percent stake.
In turn MASN would pay each team the same amount for the right to broadcast games.
But since the Orioles maintained majority ownership of the network, they remained more profitable.
This prompted the Nationals to question whether they were receiving fair market value from MASN.
In 2012 the network offered the Nationals $34 million per year, maxing out at $45.6 million by 2016.
The Nationals rejected that offer, leading to mediation.
A committee later ruled the Nationals should’ve been paid $53 million in 2012 and $67 million in 2016.
The Orioles and MASN then sued MLB and the Nationals.
A judge threw out the committee’s recommendation, and the case ultimately ended up at New York’s highest court, which unanimously ruled the committee’s decision should’ve stood.
As result the Orioles and MASN technically owed the Nationals roughly $100 million, although the court instead ordered both parties to “resolve any disputes over nonpayment of those fees in accordance with their agreement.”
So, that’s the story of how both teams came to this agreement today.