data-mm-id=”_5csonesdj”>Public opinion of baseball has been in a steady decline over the last two months as MLB and the MLBPA have engaged in a bitter battle over the details of a shortened and fanless 2020 season due to COVID-19. The owners are very worried they aren't going to make much money if a season is held without any stadium revenue, while the players are displeased those owners are going back on their March agreement for fully prorated salaries and the two sides are duking it out both privately and in the court of public opinion. It is rather difficult to side with the owners in this fight, especially in light of news like what Jeff Passan reported a few weeks back that some would rather cancel the season outright than incur even the slightest cost that would come with paying everyone to put games on without getting every last dollar out of the operations. It is made even more difficult when people like Bill DeWitt Jr., owner and chairman of the St. Louis Cardinals, goes on radio to tell people that the multi-billion dollar industry of baseball is not particularly profitable. Appearing on 590 The Fan with Frank Cusumano, DeWitt said the following when asked why, in light of payroll cuts across baseball over the last few years, players should help subsidize profits if they won't reap the rewards of a high revenue stream (segment 1 starting at 7:14): “Well, take a look at the deal the players have. Don’t think for a minute the reduced payroll added money in the pockets of the owners, because it didn’t. If you look at the growth and personnel of the franchises, we’ve grown, and this is non-players, we’ve grown over the last six years from 240 employees to 400. A lot more is put into training, conditioning, promotional work, front office, analytics. It’s a bit of a zero-sum game. The players have gotten approximately what they did percentage-wise, based on revenue maybe it’s a little bit less, but they have by far the best deal of any players in any sport. That’s why you see the other sports coming back pretty quickly, because they’re aligned with the players. The more the revenue, the more the players get based on a formula. We don’t have that in baseball. The players have always fought for whatever they can get in individual negotiations and it’s been to their benefit. The industry isn’t very profitable, to be quite honest. I think they understand that. But they think the owners are hiding profits, this and that. I think there’s been a little bit of distrust there. “- Bill DeWitt Jr. Whew. Welcome to the spin zone. Let's give DeWitt the benefit of the doubt here and believe that he's not saying baseball isn't very profitable, hard stop, which would be blatantly incorrect. Let's assume he's saying baseball isn't very profitable relatively speaking, meaning it isn't as profitable as other sports or in proportion to the amount of money generated. According to Forbes, MLB made a record-$10.7 billion in revenue in 2019. Ahead of the season, DeWitt's Cardinals were worth $2.1 billion on their own in Forbes' yearly team valuations list. They also had a payroll of only $166 million in 2019. Other proprietary financial information is hard to come by, but MLB revenue has steadily increased for 17 consecutive years, along with the value of their franchises. The Cardinals are in the middle of a 15-year TV contract with Fox Sports Midwest that will pay them an estimated $1 billion over the life of the deal and grant them a 30 percent equity stake in the network. I can't give you the exact breakdown of how much money St. Louis made last year via revenue sharing in combination with the TV deal and how that parses out with the payroll of the players and the other employees behind the scenes. Sure, DeWitt might not be making tens of millions after it's all said and done, but with what we do know, a fair conclusion that there still a profit to be made can be arrived at. Given that DeWitt himself is in the middle of a labor dispute, you'll excuse me for believing his claim that baseball isn't particularly profitable comes across as extremely dubious.
Related Posts
Manchester City have completed the signing of highly rated Argentina youth international Maximo Perrone from Velez Sarsfield.
The 20-year-old is reported to have cost City £8million initially and has signed a deal that runs through June 2028.
Perrone only made his breakthrough at Velez last March, but the central midfielder quickly established himself as a prominent part of the senior team, even wearing the captain s armband on occasion.
His contract had entered its final year, and although City are said to be paying more than his reported £7m release clause, that was sure to be significantly higher if Velez did manage to secure his future into 2024.
Perrone is the latest in a string of exports to fetch Velez a considerable fee in the past six years, wi…
Four years ago, Wayne Rooney burst onto the world stage by starring for England in the 2004 European Championships. Many people in England, maybe optimistically, think that we would have gone on to win that tournament if Rooney hadn’t been injured in the penalty shoot-out defeat to Portugal.
At that time, I was convinced that Rooney was going to become one of the best players in the world. I was certain that he was going to be England’s best player for a very long time indeed. Watching Euro 2008 I have been wondering whether he would have stood out in this tournament if he had been there and whether he has come anywhere near the hype and hope that surrounded him four years ago.
We all know that Rooney came to fame by becoming the younge…
Arsenal are interested in signing John Stones from Premier League rivals Manchester City, according to . It has been reported that the Gunners want to be kept informed of the former Everton central defender and would be keen on speaking to him if he became available.
The report has added that Stones has been waiting patiently for his chance at City, which he got in the 5-0 win against Burnley at the Etihad Stadium in the Premier League at the weekend. However, the England international central defender could have a big decision to make on his future in the coming weeks if he fails to get regular playing time under manager Pep Guardiola, according to the report.
According to , Stones has made two appearances in the Premier League and has made two starts and two substitut…
The Sun reports that both the Gunners and Spurs are keen on signing Real Madrid midfielder, Ruben De la Red. However, the price is estimated to be around ₤15million to secure his services.
The 23 year old star was hugely impressive for Getafe last season on loan. So much so that he earned not only a place in Spain’s triumphant Euro 2008 squad, but also a return to Real Madrid, who exercised their buy-back option this summer.
It is uncertain whether the he will remain at the Bernabeu past pre-season, as Madrid is reportedly intent on using the deep-lying playmaker as a makeweight for certain transfer targets, much alike Robinho.
Blancos boss Berndt Schuster has stated he would like to give De la Red the opportunity to work his way i…
Chelsea s second string flattered to deceive at Carrow Road as the 2017 FA Cup finalists were held to a 0-0 draw by Norwich City in the third round.
Antonio Conte used Saturday s clash as a chance to give some of his squad players more game time, but it backfired as they struggled to create openings and will need a replay if they are to progress.
The likes of Kenedy, Michy Batshuayi and Willy Caballero were all given rare starts for the visitors, but they were easily marshalled by the Championship side.
A disappointing first half failed to produce a single shot on target, and, although Chelsea improved slightly after the break thanks to Willian, finding a goal proved too much.
It is a fourth unbeaten game in a row for Daniel Farke s Canaries, who impres…
Jupp Heynckes is relishing the challenge of going up against Julian Nagelsmann when Bayern Munich host Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga this weekend.
Nagelsmann is the youngest coach in Germany s top flight and has been touted as a future Bayern boss after impressing since taking over from Huub Stevens at Hoffenheim in February 2016.
The 30-year-old guided the Sinsheim side to safety in the 2016-17 campaign and led them to a top-four place last term, securing Champions League football.
This season they sit ninth after three wins in their last 13 league matches, but remaining four points off second means Nagelsmann s growing reputation has not been affected.
Heynckes, the oldest coach in the Bundesliga, continues to be impressed by this weekend s adversary and…
Sky Italia is reporting that Serie A giants Lazio are readying summer bid for Parma midfielder Marco Parolo.
The Biancocelesti are expected to spend heavily in an attempt to avoid another disappointing season, and it would appear as though the Italy international is one of their primary targets.
According to Sky Italia, Lazio plan to offer around €5 million for the player who has another three years left on his deal at Parma.
Having largely impressed at Cesena, Marco Parolo made a switch to Parma in the summer of 2012, initially joining on loan before signing a permanent deal.
The 29-year-old has continued with impressive performances at Ennio Tardini, scoring 11 goals in 72 Serie A appearances.
After enjoying the most successful season in his …
is suggesting that Barcelona right-back Dani Alves has urged the club to sign Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere in the future.
Alves went up against Wilshere for Brazil when they took on England earlier in the month and many said that the Arsenal midfielder was the best player on the pitch at Wembley that evening.
When you consider the talent that was on the pitch in that encounter, it shows you just how good Wilshere was and a move to Barcelona could be on the cards.
Alves has often come out and said he would like the La Liga club to sign a certain type of player and it seems as though he is a big admirer of Wilshere.
He said: “He has a lot of quality and a great personality. If I was given the chance to choose, he is a player that I would sign for Barcelona…
Everton s reported plans to hire Vitor Pereira as the successor to Marco Silva have been scuppered after the Shanghai SIPG coach confirmed his intention to remain in China.
The Toffees sacked Silva following their 5-2 Merseyside derby defeat to Liverpool at the start of the month.
Club favourite Duncan Ferguson took charge at the weekend as Everton beat Chelsea 3-1 and the Scot was well received by supporters, though he distanced himself from suggestions he should lead the team full-time.
Pereira, Marcelino, Unai Emery and David Moyes had been linked with succeeding Silva, with the former reportedly their first choice.
But Pereira appears to have ended Everton s chances of bringing him to England.
| This is class.
The great Howard Kendal…
Frank Lampard backed Carlo Ancelotti to bounce back at the top level after Napoli sacked the experienced Italian on Tuesday.
Ancelotti was dismissed three hours after leading the club to a 4-0 victory over Genk, which confirmed their place in the Champions League knockout rounds.
Poor results in Serie A and rumours of discontent at Stadio San Paolo had placed pressure on the ex-Milan head coach for a number of weeks.
Links to the vacant posts at Everton and Arsenal have already emerged and Blues boss Lampard, who played under Ancelotti at Stamford Bridge, suggested the 60-year-old would have no trouble finding another high-profile position.
I have huge respect for him, I am very sorry for him, Lampard said after Chelsea s win over Lille.
I know …