Baseball Business | The Baseball Zealot

THE RICH GET RICHER

When I was a kid I used to get excited about teams beefing up for the home stretch with deals around the trading deadline. But now it’s all about MONEY. BIG MONEY! Let’s level the playing field and bring parity to baseball. I know what you’re thinking, the Brewers, Twins, Marlins, & Rays are all still in the race. That’s true, but there’s something wrong when teams can steal players away for next to nothing, all because of money.

Big market teams like the Yankees & the Angels can virtually get stars for nothing. Ivan Rodriguez going to New York for Kyle Farnsworth is obsene, so is Mark Teixeira being traded to the LA Angels of Anaheim for Casey Kotchman. You can’t laud GM’s who steal players from smaller market ballclubs. I am not putting teams down for taking advantage of the situation that currently exists in baseball, I just wish MLB would do something to correct it.

Some of you may be wondering my take on the White Sox getting future Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, Jr. in exchange for Nick Masset & Danny Richar. While I agree that Masset & Richar are marginal prospects at best, Junior hasn’t really done anything for the Reds this year, and the jury is out as to whether he’ll be able to play CF & help the White Sox down the stretch this year.

MLB All-Star game revenues up

Looks like MLB will be making a buck or two during the All-Star break:

Ticket prices are setting records. The most expensive face-value seat for Tuesday’s contest is $725 – more than twice as pricey as the top ticket in San Francisco last year and nearly triple the 2006 benchmark of $250, when the game was played in Pittsburgh.

And as more and more non-game events are added, so does their revenue increase.

Even the non-game events are drawing New York prices. The cheapest face-value seat for the State Farm Home Run Derby on July 14 is three figures, which is akin to paying $100 to watch batting practice on steroids. The All-Star Fanfest at the Javits Center is predicted to draw records crowds despite a $30 ticket price for adults and $25 for children.

I miss the old days when the hype wasn’t there. I guess the argument can be made that all this is “good for baseball” but jeez, when the sports media is busy covering what I considering entertainment (i.e. not sports) for purely monetary reasons, I’m not sure it’s such a good thing.

Delineating sports and entertainment… I suppose I’m sounding like a purist now.

MLB’s Bulletin D-12 and Replays

In light of the baseball instant replay issue, Kevin Murphy from the Kansas City Star has an interesting article on MLB’s new policy called Bulletin D-12.

Apparently, Chris DeRuyscher who is director of game entertainment for the Royals passed on to him the policy for what plays are acceptable (and unacceptable) to be replayed up on the scoreboard.

The big issue here? Not to “show up” the umpire. Here is a snippet:

“Clubs must continue to use good judgment not to ‘show up’ the umpires, incite the crowd or distract players, but this admonition does not preclude showing close plays.”

According to Murphy, “any calls on balls or strikes, brushback pitches and any case where the umpire has clearly made an incorrect call” cannot be shown.

Non-compliance to the policy results in a fine according to DeRuyscher.

I’d be curious to know what the real reason is behind this. The umpire’s union? Crowd control? Just simply MLB’s over-reaching desire to control everything that fans see?

Ballgirl video hoists viral marketing campaign

A few people have sent me a link to a video of the ballgirl who caught the foul ball in left field to the supposed amazement of the leftfielder. It does look pretty amazing. Unfortunately, it’s a hoax.

It’s part of a viral marketing campaign by a sports drink company. The ballgirl in question is stuntwoman Phoenix Brown and the video was apparently shot during and after a game by the Fresno Grizzlies and Tacoma Rainiers.

Brown was attached to wires in order to make the big jump.

The viral marketing campaign has been effective. On YouTube alone, the video has been viewed over a half million times and each time a bottle of the sports drink is prominently displayed at the end of video. In addition, any talk of the viral campaign brings them more advertising.

Come on guys, did you really think a ballplayer was going to let a girl show him up like that?

MLB strikes out against US Supreme Court over stats

That MLB lost a court case is no small matter.

The Supreme Court of the United States will not review MLB and the Player’s Union’s case that outside companies that use MLB stats will “exploit players’ identity for commercial gain”. This is in reference to those entities who use MLB stats for fantasy leagues.

The companies which facilitate fantasy leagues are already licensed by MLB Advanced Media. This court case will presumably open the market for others.

From the Los Angeles Times:

The court’s refusal also throws into question any licensing deals already in place, something MLB had said amounted to “billions of dollars.” When MLB appealed to the high court in February, it argued that such deals could be jeopardized if companies had a free-speech right to use the names of famous people without permission.

For my part, I agree with the decision on principle, not just because I think MLB is trying to make a buck at every corner. Stats are facts, news, info. Plus, MLB needs to realize the PR factor involved here. For the piddly amount involved here (yes, I realize that Fantasy Baseball is a growing industry and not so piddly anymore), they need to realize how much Fantasy baseball increases the interest in Major League Baseball.

I don’t just mean casual interest either. Anyone with a fantasy team or a sim league team knows what I’m talking about. How many of you religiously follow your players on a daily basis?

I’m raising my hand.

MLB TOO BIG FOR ITS BRITCHES

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing the other day, MLB wasn’t going to allow Little League baseball teams to use their team names without the proper licensing. Maybe I’m missing something here, but I’m afraid I’m not. It seems ridiculous to me that MLB would be concerned about the money they get off the proper licensing regarding their team names when it comes to Little League. I know their’s money to be made, but come on!

I remember being a Little League coach of seven & eight year olds when I was only 18 years old myself. Our team was called the Yankees. I honestly don’t know if there was a licensing fee paid or not for the privilege of being called the Yankees. Would the fee be less if your team was named after a loser team, like the Cubs? Just kidding.

I would think MLB would be proud to have Little Leaguers wearing their team names on their uniforms, dreaming of growing up to be a major leaguer, like their heroes, Mark McGwire or Sammy Sosa. Now it turns out their heroes were cheaters, doing steroids to get an unfair edge over their opponents.

In this day of corporate greed, I guess it makes sense to squeeze every penny out of every pocket. Maybe the Little Leaguers could sell lemonade so the big, rich, millionaire ballplayers could get their cut of the licensing money. I say, shame on MLB, and I think MLB is getting a little too big for its britches!

No surprise: MLB tickets rising in 2008

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that major league baseball ticket prices are up from last year. A 10.9% increase from last year.

Team Marketing Report has done their homework on this topic. You can even download an Excel spreadsheet with info for every team including data not only on prices on tickets but for concessions items, parking and other incidental costs for attending a ballgame.

For comparison, check their MLB Fan Cost Index which compares all these costs for all years going back to 1991.

Ahh, league average for a beer in 1991… $2.87.

MLB needs a lesson in PR

Cape Cod Baseball League is volunteer-staffed and has a annual budget of less than $2 million. So you can bet that the yearly grant of $100,000 from Major League Baseball is pretty critical.

Now that grant is in trouble because of licensing issues imposed by MLB. The big leagues are requiring that all teams that share a team name with a MLB team purchase uniforms and souvenirs from MLB-licensed vendors (read: more expensive) or lose that grant. MLB is also requesting an 11 percent royalty on all sales from affected teams.

Currently, the CCBL purchases its uniforms and merchandise from local sources.

This is just one more money grab by MLB. It seems they are inventing newer and more creative ways to make a buck and alienating every fan base along the way. Between cracking down on fantasy leagues and online reporting, the whole DirectTV mess a while back, plus the subtle increase of marketing of baseball, it seems everything MLB does is to bring in an extra buck.

Call me a rebel. I think the offices of Major League Baseball is to become the stewards of the game of baseball that we love. But it’s gotten way out of hand and the reason and purpose of the game has been lost. And the Cape Cod Baseball League is a prime example.

Fortunately, the CCBL says they will not “roll over” or be “strong-armed” by MLB.

Look out Little Leagues… MLB is coming for you.

Boras picks up another one

scottboras Manny Ramirez fired his agent and has hired Scott Boras. Or maybe it’s more appropriate to say that Boras has picked up Ramirez as a client.

Ramirez, never one shy to speak his mind, said he’d like to stay in Boston but the idea of free agency wouldn’t be so bad either:

“I want to stay here, but it’s up to them if they want to bring me [back]. But if they don’t want to bring me back, that’s fine. I know I’ll be a free agent after ’08 so that’s another thing I’m looking forward to.”

In a free agent year, you can bet Manny’s fantasy value will go up.

With a growing list of teams who simply won’t deal with Scott Boras, Manny might be find his options somewhat limited next spring should he go that route. Then again, any team who deal with Boras probably can’t afford Manny anyway.

Legends Field renamed for the Boss

Commercial naming rights, begone. Nope, the New York Yankees have announced that they are renaming Legends Field, which has been the the Yanks’ spring training home for 30 years, George M. Steinbrenner Field.

As much as he could be, the billionaire and principal owner of the New York Yankees was humbled by the action:

“I am humbled and flattered to have this outstanding and totally unexpected honor conferred on me,” George Steinbrenner said in a statement. “I extend my thanks to the Tampa City Council and to the Hillsborough County Commissioners for passing resolutions suggesting and recommending the change.”

The newly renamed facility is located in Tampa, Florida.

(photo: Baseball Parks of the Minor Leagues)