MLB Hires Josh Clark To Oversee Video Content Distribution In Wake Of Diamond Bankruptcies

NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball made another addition to its broadcast department as it adapts following the bankruptcy of the Diamond Sports Group’s regional sports networks, hiring Josh Clark on Tuesday to the new position of senior vice president of content distribution.

Clark will report to Kenny Gersh, MLB’s executive vice president of media and business development. The 40-year-old will oversee distribution agreements for local media, the MLB Network, MLB.TV and the Extra Innings cable package.

Diamond’s companies filed for bankruptcy protection in March after operating 19 regional sports networks under the Bally Sports name. MLB took over broadcasts of San Diego Padres games on May 31 and Arizona Diamondbacks games on July 18 and says it is prepared to gain rights to more teams for next season.

A graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Clark worked at Dish Network/Sling TV, NBC Universal and Paramount, where he spent six years and had been executive vice president of U.S. networks distribution.

MLB hired Billy Chambers on Feb. 1 in the newly created position of executive vice president for local media and promoted Gersh to his current role from executive vice president of business development.

One month later, MLB established a local media department. Doug Johnson was hired as senior vice president and executive producer of local media, Greg Pennell as senior vice president of local media and Kendall Burgess as vice president of local media technical operations.