Fox is "weeks away from launching a San Diego cable channel centered on the Padres, but the deal remains in limbo" due to the uncertainty around whether the TV deal "provided an upfront payment" that Vice Chair & CEO Jeff Moorad "could use to complete his purchase from outgoing owner John Moores," according to Bill Shaikin of the L.A. TIMES. A source said that the proposed contract "included an up-front payment of more than $150 million." MLB "wants TV revenue put back into the team," and Moorad "told San Diego news outlets this week that 'every dollar of the TV deal will be spent [on] the club.'" Shaikin noted it is "unclear how Fox and the Padres might redo their deal, or whether the owners will reconsider their vote on Moorad in the short term" (LATIMES.com, 2/14). In San Diego, Jay Posner cited a source as saying that the Padres "will receive a rights fee worth $30 million in the first year of their new 20-year television deal" with Fox. The source added that when "other factors, including a 'signing bonus' and 20-percent equity in the new Fox Sports San Diego, are considered, the club could receive as much as $40 million this season." USA Today last week reported the team could average $75M annually from the deal, but the source called that the "most rosy, optimistic" scenario. The new deal is pending approval from MLB, but the source said, "I don't see how the Padres are not on Fox Sports San Diego come Opening Day, whether there's a fully executed agreement or an interim agreement to bridge the gap" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/15). MLB writer Tom Krasovic noted the amount the Padres get from Fox will "start out at $30 million this year and run to between $65 million and $70 million in the final year." The $30M amount is $14.8M "more than what the Padres got from Cox Communications in 2011" (INSIDETHEPADRES.BLOGSPOT.com, 2/13).
