ESPN has taken one of its Big 3 insiders off the board as Major League Baseball’s Hot Stove begins to fire up.
MLB insider Jeff Passan is off the market, forgoing free agency to re-sign with ESPN after receiving substantial interest from a variety of gambling companies, The Post has learned.
Next up, ESPN will try to ink insiders Adrian Wojnarowski and Adam Schefter. Both have contracts that are up in the summer of 2022.
While ESPN has been in cost-cutting mode, it has made exceptions. The hard-working Passan, who has the rare combination of being a news breaker and a TV personality, fits the mold. He is believed to have received a substantial raise.
ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro has a long history with Passan, having first hired him for a national spot when Pitaro ran Yahoo Sports. Passan, 41, left Yahoo for ESPN three years ago.
Passan drew interest from gambling sites. Outlets like DraftKings, FanDuel and Caesars, to name a few, are looking at sports content folks as a way to entice bettors to their platforms.