Don’t download that Stadium app just yet.  A little over two weeks ago, news broke that the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks were expected to announce they were moving their game broadcasts from NBC Sports Chicago to Stadium, a multi-platform sports network controlled by Jerry Reinsdorf. Turns out that was a bit premature.  Yesterday, news broke again that the three teams would instead partner with Standard Media Group to create the new television broadcast home for all three teams, starting in October.  The currently unnamed network is expected to be available across multiple platforms, including over-the-air and carriage agreements with cable and streaming providers.

Based in Nashville, Standard Media Group is a local broadcast and digital media company that, according to its website which looks to have not been updated since 2022, operates television stations in Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska and Rhode Island.  Compared to them, Stadium, owned by a digital and media investment subsidiary of the White Sox with offices and studios at the United Center, looks like a major player.

Why the change?  Maybe Reinsdorf is looking to start greasing the wheels in Nashville ahead of a potential move.  Maybe the thought of spending money, even if the majority of it was coming back to him, offends the chairman to his core. Maybe the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks draw better in Rhode Island than anybody realizes.  We may never know the truth.