Don’t worry, dear reader, this story isn’t actually about regional sports networks—it’s merely R.S.N.-adjacent. But the potential collapse of Diamond Sports Group, a bankruptcy journey that has become one of the great leitmotifs of the Varsity cinematic universe, has created a fascinating emerging opportunity—and potential bidding war—for some far larger players. I’m told that several of the world’s biggest media and technology companies—Amazon, Apple, Google/YouTube, and NBCUniversal—are checking in with MLB on a regular basis about the possibility of getting local rights as they come available. A Diamond default would strike the mother lode.

ESPN, for its part, has been in contact with MLB for more than a year—even before Diamond filed for bankruptcy. At a media day event in Bristol on Wednesday, chairman Jimmy Pitaro revealed that he would be very interested in putting those rights on the ESPN “flagship” streaming service he’s planning to launch next fall. “If Major League Baseball is able to put together a group of teams, we would love to be able to do a larger deal,” he said.