Fortune Magazine reported this morning that the Yankees may be selling their lucrative cable network, possibly for as much as $3.5 billion.

The YES Network, owned by the Yankees, Goldman Sachs and some smaller investors, has been a major source of revenue for the franchise, and a large reason why team owner George Steinbrenner has been content to carry league-high payrolls of more than $200 million. I am surprised that the the Yankees would consider selling the network, but am even more surprised by the possible sale price. If indeed the network fetches $3.5 million, that's more than twice what the Yankees team is reported to be worth.

Consider what this means for Orioles owner Peter Angelos. The Baltimore attorney currently controls about 88 percent of the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, with the Nationals controlling the rest. I don't see MASN being worth as much as the YES Network, (one industry sources pegs MASN at about $700 million) but as the new network continues to grow, it will certainly rise in value, perhaps even becoming more valuable than the teams themselves.

Think Peter Angelos or Ted Lerner will ever use lack of money as a reason they can't field competitive teams? They could, but I doubt it would go over too well.

-- Tim Lemke

I commented in this space last month that the NHL needed to find a way to get back on ESPN, and it appears there are early steps to make that happen.

Sports Business Journal reports the NHL is in talks to get some of its games on ESPN possibly as soon as the 2008-09 season.

The trade publication suggests that ESPN might agree to take on the package of nine games now aired by NBC, which broadcasts games as part of a revenue-sharing agreement. Word has it that NBC, unhappy with dismal ratings, would drop hockey after this coming season.

It's unclear, however, what this means for Versus, which currently has the exclusive rights for the NHL on cable. The Comcast-owned network pays the NHL about $70 million per year for the rights, but league officials have faced heavy criticism for the relationship because Versus is unavailable in some key hockey markets. (Versus is available in 71 million homes, compared to 92 homes for ESPN.)

According to SBJ, Versus might be willing to waive the exclusivity requirement if it gets something in return, such as reduction in rights fee, a better schedule or longer contract with the NHL.

If a deal with ESPN happens, it would be a stark reversal from a year ago, when the NHL and the network were like divorced spouses with nothing to say to one another.I asked Capitals owner Ted Leonsis before this season whether there was any push to get back onto ESPN. Not a chance, he told me at the time. When the NHL went into its lockout, it needed all the friends it could get, he said. But it was around that time that ESPN decided to drop the NHL from its programming lineup. To NHL officials, it was a show of disrespect.

From what I have read, however, it appears that changes in ESPN's leadership might make a reconciliation possible. Apparently the folks at ESPN who were most responsible for dropping hockey aren't in charge anymore. And ESPN execs must know that it simply looks bad for the "worldwide leader in sports" to ignore hockey entirely; it has faced criticism from many sources -- including its own ombudsman -- for practically ignoring hockey in its Sportscenter broadcasts.

-- Tim Lemke

We know that Bud Selig can't be comfortable following around Barry Bonds for days on end, so I guess we can't blame him for taking a break and allowing someone else from his office to watch this next series against the Nationals.

After all, let's review what Bud Selig has had to do in the last week or so:

1. He's had to travel to Southern California.

2. He's had to sit and watch baseball games in a private box at three of the nicest ballparks in the majors.

A person would have to be crazy to want to do that.

NBC ticked off many tennis fans when it announced that it ended its relationship with Hall of Fame broadcaster Bud Collins, the unique commentator who was a staple of the network's Wimbledon broadcasts for 35 years.

Fortunately, it appears ESPN knows a good thing when it sees it.

The sports cable network said it has signed Collins to do live commentary for ESPN2 at Wimbledon, the French Open and the Australian Open in 2008. He'll also file reports for SportsCenter, ESPNNews and ESPN Radio beginning with this year's U.S. Open and at events throughout the year.

"Bud Collins is tennis, a truly unique sports television personality, and ESPN is proud to add his insight, wit and wisdom to our coverage," said Norby Williamson, an executive vice president with ESPN. "For more than 40 years, Bud has had a courtside seat at every meaningful event in the sport. He knows everyone, and everyone knows him. When the opportunity presented itself to add Bud to our tennis team, it was an easy decision to quickly reach out to him -- his perspective, great storytelling and inimitable style will help further distinguish our Grand Slam coverage on ESPN2 and on SportsCenter."

Collins, 78, made a name for himself with his hilarious wardrobe -- I recall him once wearing pants featuring characters from Sesame Street -- and his colorful delivery, which was often peppered with creative nicknames for players. Roger Federer is "Lord of the Swings." The Williams sisters are "Sisters Sledgehammer." Jimmy Connors was the "Brash Basher of Belleville."

I criticize ESPN a lot in this space, but the network deserves a lot of credit for making this hire. Bud Collins has been as much of a contributer to the game of tennis as most players, and it's nice that we'll continue to see him on television.

Now Redskins fans can show their loyalty every time they pay the phone or cable bill.

Bank of America has struck a deal to become the first-ever official banking sponsor of the National Football League and announced that it will now offers Redskins-themed checks and debit cards.

The three-year sponsorship deal will allow the bank to use the NFL shield logo and other marks in advertising and promotions and the exclusive rights to advertise during live NFL games and on NFL.com and the NFL Network.

As part of the sponsorship, Bank of America announced the creation of "NFL Checking," a selection of team-specific banking products like checks and debit cards. Checks and check cards featuring the Redskins, Cowboys, Panthers and Patriots are already available. The deal seen as an expansion of the bank's "My Expression" affinity banking program, that includes special interest credit cards and checks.

"This deal with the NFL is something we're very excited about because of their size and reach," said Susan Faulkner, Deposits Executive with Bank of America. "If you look at the brand of the NFL, it reaches coast to coast."

Bank of America is no stranger to the sports world. The bank in 2004 paid a reported $140 million for the 20-year naming rights to the Carolina Panthers stadium in Charlotte. It is also the official sponsor of Major League Baseball, as well as NASCAR and ten of its speedways. The bank is the title sponsor to this year's Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motorspeedway this October. Bank of America also sponsors the oldest 54-hole event on golf's Champion's Tour and is a sponsor of the Olympic Games.

(updated - 2:45 p.m.)

It won't be hard to find the Redskins-Ravens preseason game on television Saturday. If you have cable or the dish, there's a good chance you'll be able to find it on four different channels -- Comcast SportsNet, WUSA-9 and WBFF-Fox 45 and either MASN or MASN2, depending on where you live.

Comcast SportsNet, the official local cable network of the Redskins, will air the game featuring play-by-play man Mike Patrick alongside his old Sunday Night Football pal Joe Theismann. Kelli Johnson will report from the sidelines. WUSA-9 will pick up the Comcast feed.

The Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, the official local cable network of the Ravens, will also produce the game with Dick Stockton, Darryl Johnston and former Ravens defensive tackle Tony Siragusa.

The game will air on MASN2 in the D.C. area and MASN in the Baltimore area. (Don't worry baseball fans: the Nationals will air on WDCA-20.) Fox45 will pick up the MASN feed.

Only the broadcasts on WUSA-9 and Comcast will be shown in high-definition.

To simplify:

Comcast SportsNet: Patrick, Theismann, Johnson. In high-definition. Coverage starts at 7 p.m. with an hour-long pregame show.

WUSA-9: Ditto, except Channel 9 will air its own half-hour pregame show starting at 7:30 p.m.

MASN: Stockton, Johnston, Siragusa. No high-definition. There will be Ravens-oriented pregame show starting at 7:30 p.m.

Fox45: Same as MASN, but the station will also air its own pregame show beginning at 7:30 p.m.

-- Tim Lemke