Sports With Friends

As 2026 began, a new sports media controversy emerged. Main Street Sports Group, formerly Diamond Sports, missed a payment to the St. Louis Cardinals for their local TV rights. Days later, they missed payments to numerous NBA teams.

This episode continues a long tradition that began eight years ago. The whole origin story of this tradition is explained in the first few minutes of the show.

Daryl Ruiter has been covering Cleveland sports for a quarter-century. Since 2011, he’s been the beat reporter for the Cleveland Browns on 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland. The Ohio native also covers select Cavaliers and Guardians games.

In December 2025, the 12-team college football playoff was revealed. This episode comes out after the regular season and before the bowl season and subsequent playoff.

Carlos Alcaraz, the #1 men’s tennis player in the world, is playing in a tennis exhibition at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ on December 7th, 2025. Alcaraz will face off in a three-set match against two-time US Open Semifinalist Frances Tiafoe.

Kevin Ingram is a play-by-play announcer for Vanderbilt basketball, a sideline reporter for Vanderbilt football, and a play-by-play announcer for baseball on SEC+. He has been a sportscaster in the Nashville area for three decades.

Longtime sportscaster Marc Malusis was recently featured on WPIX Channel 11 in New York. Malusis is best known for his time on-air at Sports Radio 66 WFAN, also in New York.

Lawrence Moten, the leading scorer in Syracuse basketball history, died unexpectedly on September 30, 2025. He was 53. This episode is a tribute to the legendary Syracuse basketball player.

The National Hockey League recently began its 2025-2026 regular season. Greg Wyshynski is an ESPN senior NHL writer, podcaster, and insider.