DAYTON, OHIO—Dayton Dragons games on Friday, July 24; Saturday, July 25; and Sunday, July 26 will be televised live on Dayton’s CW from Day Air Ballpark in the heart of the Water Street District. The Dragons will host the Cedar Rapids Kernels (affiliates of the Minnesota Twins) all three dates. The telecasts will begin at 7:00 pm on Friday and Saturday, and at 1:00 pm on Sunday.
The broadcasts are part of a 15-game 2026 Dragons television package, presented by AES Ohio. Dayton’s CW reaches approximately 500,000 households and over 1.2 million potential viewers in a 10-county area. All games will be broadcast live and in high definition on the following outlets:
- Over the air Channel 26.1
- Spectrum Channels 13 and 1013
- Direct TV and DISH Network Channel 26.
Dragons Director of Broadcasting Tom Nichols will handle the play-by-play. Jeff Stevens, a 2017 inductee into the Dayton Broadcasters Hall of Fame and morning show host at iHeart’s MIX 107.7 FM for more than 20 years, will serve as color commentator on Friday. Hutch Konerman, WDTN TV Sports Anchor and a member of the Dayton sports media group for more than 20 years, will serve as color commentator on Saturday and Sunday.
All game broadcasts include the performance of the national anthem by local singers, groups, and musicians. National Anthem performers this weekend will include Kate Stanton on Friday, the St. Henry Trio on Saturday, and Kate Simmerman on Sunday.
Tom Nichols is in his 19th year as the voice of the Dragons and 39th year in Minor League Baseball as a broadcaster. He will serve as the play-by-play announcer on all 2026 television broadcasts. He has broadcast over 4,500 minor league games since beginning his career in 1988 and has worked at every level of Minor League Baseball. He is a Ball State University graduate and a native of Muncie, Indiana. Nichols was inducted into the Greater Dayton Baseball Hall of Fame in 2024 based on his career in baseball broadcasting, and he will be inducted into the Ohio Sports Hall of Fame in the fall of 2026.
Jeff Stevens is the award-winning host of the morning show on Mix 107.7, selected numerous times as a finalist for the Dayton Daily News Best of Dayton awards for “Best Media Personality.” Jeff, a Dayton native, can also be heard (since 2014) on iHeartRadio stations nationwide as the host of “The 80s Show,” which airs on weekends in over 50 markets, from Dayton to Chicago to Phoenix among others. Jeff has also served for more than 25 years as the public address announcer for University of Dayton basketball.
Hutch Konerman joined WDTN-TV in 2004 as the Weekend Sports Anchor and Sports Reporter and remained with the station on a full-time basis until the spring of 2022, when he transitioned to a part-time role. He began his broadcasting career in public radio as a news and sports reporter for WVXU-FM in Cincinnati. He also served as a news reporter and producer at WGEM-TV in Quincy, Ill. and as Sports Anchor and Reporter for WHIO-TV in Dayton. Hutch received a regional Emmy for his sports feature in 2006.
Remaining Dragons telecasts in 2026 on Dayton’s CW are scheduled for the following dates: July 24, July 25, July 26, August 7, August 21, and September 4.