Braves President thrilled with early results of BravesVision

The final few years under FanDuel Sports Network were an unmitigated disaster for the Braves and a number of other MLB clubs tied into similar deals. With that situation in the rearview, Atlanta pivoted in a major way — launching its own network, BravesVision, which is now available across streaming platforms and bundled with providers like Xfinity, DirecTV, Spectrum, and Fubo.

The rollout came right up against Opening Day, leaving plenty of fans scrambling to figure out how they’d even watch the team. But a month into the season, things have stabilized, and Braves President and CEO Derek Schiller is already calling it a “defining moment” for the organization.

“The economics right now support our decision,” Schiller said, via Front Office Sports. “A month into this, we can safely say we have made the right decision, not just for the Atlanta Braves and the business of the Braves, but also our fans. … We believe we’re not only economically viable, but we’re maximizing that [opportunity], which we would equate to where we were previously, maybe even beating that. We’re also reaching more fans.”

The Braves are uniquely positioned to pull something like this off. Their reach across the Southeast — and really the entire country — stems back to the TBS era under Ted Turner, which built one of the largest and most loyal fanbases in baseball. Pair that with decades of consistent on-field success, and it creates a foundation most organizations would dream of.

“The Braves are different in so many ways from some of our peers,” Schiller continued. “We’ve always had a substantially different way in how we approach the marketplace, and we have television in our DNA. In many ways, we’re now returning to those roots.”

That pedigree is what makes this gamble feel more calculated than risky — and if BravesVision continues on this trajectory, the financial upside could be significant.

Of course, that’s where the conversation always circles back for fans. The Braves have built a financial powerhouse between on-field success, the growth of the Battery, and now BravesVision. The expectation is simple: that money needs to show up in the product on the field.

According to FanGraphs, Atlanta’s payroll currently sits sixth in MLB at roughly $252 million, a number that has steadily climbed. Braves Chairman Terry McGuirk has long suggested the club is aiming to break into the top five. If BravesVision delivers the way the organization believes it will, that jump could realistically happen as soon as next season.

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(Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire)