(Read this story while listening to "Why Can't We Be Friends" by War).
The Padres open the 2013 regular season in New York against the Mets on Monday, April 1. It's looking like the joke will once again be on Padres fans who are Time Warner Cable subscribers (and that's about 22% of the county) who once again won't be able to see their local Major League Baseball team on television.
TWC and FOX Sports San Diego are (still) at an impasse. There's not a lot of hope a deal will get done in the next four weeks, despite pressure from City Hall.
Mayor Bob Filner wrote a letter to Time Warner Cable executives. To say he used "strong language" is a slight understatement.
"I strongly urge you to reconsider your current decision not to provide your customers with Padres baseball this season," Filner wrote in a message dated February 11, "and act in a manner deserving of your customers' trust and continued business. Rest assured, I will continue to monitor this situation and am prepared to take the steps necessary to bring about a resolution prior to the 2013 baseball season."
To quote Dark Helmet, "I said fire a shot across their nose, not up it!"
The Mayor is not messing around here. Remember in his State of the City Address, when he talked about his commitment to the Chargers and their stadium hunt?
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"I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that our Bolts don't bolt," Filner said.
If he's that big on the Bolts, it would make sense he'd have the same kind of support for the Padres. Now, will the pressure actually make a difference? Who knows.
Barring a last-second, Grinch-esque change of heart, it seems 22% of San Diego county will once again be left without access to local MLB games.
I hope new La Jolla resident Mitt Romney is not one of them. That guy just keeps coming up on the short end of percentages.
