Saying No to YES

Saying+No+to+YES

Jessica Ventura, Writer/Editor

For Comcast customers, the YES Network is staying on the bench.

And it’s not up at bat either. Both sides say nothing has changed since Comcast dropped the YES Network, the network that carries most Yankee games and programming, in November.

Comcast says that they charge too much for a channel that few people watch. YES Network says it is the “most-watched regional sports network in the country.”

YES is the leading broadcaster for the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Nets. It also features shows such as Yankees Magazine, Yankees Hot Stove, and The Joe Girardi Show. All programs that senior Nick LaRosa and Gregory Wall cannot live without.

Lifelong Yankee fans Nick LaRosa and Gregory Wall figure they might have to change to DirecTV to see their beloved New York Yankees.

LaRosa, who has been a dedicated Yankee fan his entire life, has complained and attended an anti-Comcast rally about the absence of the YES Network, which the cable company dropped in November.

He wants it back. Pronto.

“I am this close to calling DirecTV,” LaRosa said. “To me, personally, I don’t care about all these other channels. That’s the one I need.”

On the other hand, Gregory Wall is fighting an inner rage against Comcast and praying for a negotiation.

“I am just hoping that they would sit and talk and come to an agreement,” Wall said. “It’s hard to do if they’re avoiding each other.”

YES Network has started a multimillion-dollar media campaign to implore Yankee fans in Comcast zones, which include the Monmouth and Ocean counties, to switch to another provider, such as Verizon Fios or DirecTV.

YES Network is running advertisements in Thursday’s Asbury Park Press, New York Times, and the New York Post calling on customers to “Drop Comcast Today.’’

Comcast has responded to the network, saying that it charges too much for a network that a couple of people watch. In the 2015 season, YES showed approximately 130 baseball games. But Comcast claims that more than 90 percent of Comcast’s 900,000 customers who had the YES Network didn’t watch the equivalent of a quarter of those games during the season.

However, YES dismissed Comcast’s numbers. In 2015, YES ratings were 8 percent higher among Comcast homes within New Jersey, than the channel’s overall ratings in the area. “Does that sound like a network that no one’s watching?” LaRosa said. “It’s crazy.”

Even more customers of all generations are visibly frustrated.

“I’m desperate,” said Middletown resident Matthew DeLeo, along with his grandmother Mary. Big Yankee fans, his family doesn’t want to switch from Comcast’s service. “The truly sad part about it is that nobody’s thinking about the fans,’’ says a dejected Mary.

They can watch some games on MLB.com, but doesn’t hear any pregame or postgame broadcasts. And there are rarely games on WPIX Channel 11. “When you want to relax and watch something or get some sports news, it’s tough,” DeLeo said.

So, Comcast, listen to the fans. Don’t strike us out of the old ball game.