Yankees Reportedly Buy Back YES Network for $3.4 Billion

The New York Yankees have agreed to a deal with Disney to buy back the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network (YES) for $3.4 billion, according to Fox Business on Friday.

While the Yankees previously owned 20 percent of YES with 21st Century Fox owning the remaining 80 percent, the organization decided to purchase YES fully from Disney after Disney purchased Fox's assets for $71.3 billion.

YES airs Yankees games and other Yankee-related programming, Brooklyn Nets and New York City FC games and The Michael Kay Show, which is a popular sports talk radio show based in New York.

As part of the sale, the Yankees are reportedly partnering with Amazon, Sinclair Broadcast Group and Blackstone Group. The partnership could lead to some Yankees games being streamed by Amazon in an effort to reach a wider audience.

The Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network officially launched in 2002, and it has been the primary home to Yankees baseball ever since.

Disney was ordered to sell the YES Network and the other 21 Fox Regional Sports Networks to meet federal antitrust laws since Disney also owns ESPN.

Buoyed by the purchase of the YES Network, 2019 could be a huge year for a Yankees franchise that is in search of its 28th World Series title. New York reached the American League Championship Series two seasons ago and was knocked out by the rival Boston Red Sox in the American League Division Series last season.

Despite having not reached the World Series since 2009, the Yankees are tied with the Red Sox and Houston Astros for the best odds to win the 2019 World Series at +600 (6-1), per Bovada.