TAMPA, FLORIDA – FEBRUARY 26: A detailed view of the New York Yankees logo on top of Steinbrenner Field before the spring training game between the New York Yankees and the Washington Nationals at Steinbrenner Field on February 26, 2020 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
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The New York Yankees have had plenty of legendary players in their history — they even have at least one on their current roster in superstar slugger Aaron Judge.
And the team is consistently focused on keeping those playing legends near the organization. There is Monument Park at Yankee Stadium, where fans can pay homage to several all-time greats. Then there are the coaches and instructors who were once players with the team.
And local broadcasts of Yankees games are always decorated with former players, with YES Network employing Joe Girardi, Paul O’Neill and others in recent seasons.
But one of those former players who has stayed around the Yankees thanks to his deal with YES now finds himself facing an uncertain future after multi-million dollar change to the broadcasting landscape.
“ESPN’s new contract with Major League Baseball may cost them David Cone,” Bridget Hyland wrote for NJ.com. “For the last three seasons, Cone, along with Eduardo Perez and Karl Ravech, has been in the booth for the network’s ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ broadcast. But ESPN’s new three-year, $550 million deal with MLB may conflict with Cone’s YES Network schedule.”
After striking a new broadcasting rights deal, MLB will see its ESPN schedule shift from Sunday nights to midweek. That would make it difficult for Cone to maintain his duties with both networks.
“For example, if Cone’s calling a midweek game for ESPN, he probably can’t work a midweek Yankees series on YES,” Michael McCarthy wrote for Front Office Sports. “It would also make travel more difficult when Cone’s calling weekend games for YES.”
Cone is popular with ESPN, national audiences and, of course, Yankees fans. In addition to his insight in the booth, many will remember him for the four World Series championships he won with the Yankees as well as the two All-Star teams he made while a member of the team.
According to McCarthy, it seems like Cone is more likely to stick with his YES role if a conflict between his duties for the two networks becomes insurmountable. He reported that Cone is already slated to handle more than 40 Yankees broadcasts for YES next season. Meanwhile, his deal with ESPN is set to expire at the end of next year.
Ultimately, the Yankees legend might have to pick one broadcasting role or the other for next season. But after that, he could be a major beneficiary of the changing MLB broadcast landscape, as he’s sure to be in high demand and could be able to find multiple roles that work best for his schedule.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterchawaga/2025/12/04/yankees-legend-faces-uncertain-future-after-550-million-deal/
