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Is Money Ruining Major League Baseball?

MLB

When I started thinking about this subject yesterday I was going to compare money in baseball to Steroids. You hear lots of people talking about how bad steroids have been for the game. You also hear people talking about the uneven playing field created by money. So the question is: Is Money Runing Major League Baseball?

Here are some facts. The New York Yankees have the highest payroll in MLB again this year. The 2008 payroll for the Yankees is $209,081,577. The combined payroll of the 5 lowest teams is $217,250,006. The Yankees have 3 players making over $20,000,000 this season.

Jason Giambi $23,428,571 Derek Jeter $21,600,000 Alex Rodriquez $28,000,000

Those 3 players combined make more than the entire payroll of 11 teams.

Florida Marlins

The payroll for the Florida Marlins is $21,811,500. Thats for the ENTIRE team! Jason Giambi and A Rod both make more than the entire Florida Marlins team and Derek Jeter is right there too.

So now back to the question of Is Money Ruining Major League Baseball? Of the top ten teams in payroll for 2008:

4 are in first place in their divison

1 is in second place in its division

2 are in third place in their division

2 are in 4th place in their division

1 is in last place in its division

Of the 10 teams with the lowest payroll for 2008:

4 are in last place in their division

1 is in third place in its division

2 are in 2nd place in its division

3 are in first place in their division

The Florida Marlins (30th in payroll) and the Oakland Athletics (28th in payroll) are both currently atop their respective divisions.

Oakland Athletics

So what does all this mean? It seems like there are some teams at the bottom of the payroll list that are competitive every year , such as the A's and the Twins. Then you have teams that are spending a ton of money and are near the bottom. So maybe having great coaching, a good farm system, and making the right personel decisions is more important that how much money you are actually spending.

Thats my 2 cents worth, and I know it's still very early in the season and things will change. But thats what's fun about baseball. A bunch of no name kids just up from the minors with a couple of seasoned veterans thrown in can make things interesting. It's going to be a fun season.

My source for the payroll figures is http://content.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/salaries/totalpayroll.aspx?year=2008

Jim Patton - Realtor

Century 21 M&M and Associates

DRE# 01423125

www.JPattonHomes.com

Posted by Jim Patton - Realtor - Turlock California Real Estate on 04/23/2008 02:23 PM

Comments (25)

jim patton, baseball, money

Post is included in group: Baseball Talk 101

25 Comments on Is Money Ruining Major League Baseball?

APR

2008

Jim- I think part of the money being spent is not only to win a championship, but also to put fans in the seats.

Jeremy - You are absolutely right on that count. I know when I go to see an A's game and they are playing the Yankees or the Red Sox its a packed house everytime. So yes the big names do put people in the seats. Of course thats why you pay $7 or more for a beer too. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

As long as advertisers (mostly beer companies) are willing to foot the bill, the mega-salaries in pro sports will go on.

Jim, that is a great question. I think that money has been a detriment for MLB. I really believe that what is affecting it more is the lack of fundamentals. How many guys making way north of $1 million per year can lay down a bunt? Baseball has become so infatuated with the long ball that hitters rarely move the runner up, you have guys over throwing cut off men etc..

I also think that free agency hurt baseball, no longer can you build a team to a contender and hold onto the key components of the team. When I was a kid as late as the 1970's the make up of regular players on any given roster stayed the same for 6 or 7 years, when someone left it was for retirement or in a trade. The fans today have to have a program just to see who is playing where for their favorite team.

Small ball as it is called that Oakland and Minnesota plays is frowned upon, I don't know why. Their teams are solid defensively, pitch reasonably well, and move runners up with great frequency, occasionaly hitting some home runs. If they had the resources to hold on to their players ie Torii Hunter, Dan Haren, even Giambi and Santana, how good could they be for the long haul?

Sorry, I didn't mean to write a novel in response, yes, money is the root of what is ruining baseball, but so is bad management, poor fundamentals and borish stars. If the 1950's were the golden age of baseball, the Yankees had a habit of buying guys then also, just not as often nor as glaringly. I think the amount of money that players make now, prevents their develop into complete players, it is rare that great hitters today will get their uniforms dirty to make a play in the field, or lay down a bunt with a runner on 3rd with less that 2 out in the ninth inning of a tied game. As you can see, I liked your post, it is a great question! I could go on and on. Thanks!

Erik - I agree with you about the sponsors. If MLB wasn't getting the money from the sponsors and the TV deals we wouldnt see the huge payrolls they have now. Of course it must be a good deal for the sponsors and the Networks because they keep giving them the money.

Tony and/or Darcy - Thanks for the great response. I remember watching the A's when I was a kid and I knew who they all were and what number they were. In these days of the rent-a-player we are reduced to rooting for the uniform, not so much the player. Its gotten to be that teams like the A's (and others)are farm teams for the big money teams. But I still love going to the games, just not as often as I would like to. Add in the cost of gas now (I'm about 90 miles from Oakland) and going to a game gets pretty pricey. I think I will be going to a lot more of the Single A minor league games just down the road in Modesto this year. The Modesto Nuts , farm team for the Colorado Rockies.

Maybe the statistics mean you can't always buy your way to the top.

"Small ball", as Tony & Darcy mentioned, has taken the Twins to two World Series victories in the past couple decades, on a budget that would make George Steinbrenner gag. And the Twins have finished at the top of their division quite a few times over the past twenty years.

Erik - You are right about the Twins and small ball. It has worked for the A's too. The sad thing is watching these young guys come up and develop into good players and then leave because teams like the A's and the Twins and others can't afford to pay them.

APR

2008

Money is ruining all professional sports. All the more reason to support high school and collegiate programs....

I was reading that ARod makes more than the entire Florida Marlins team combined. That fact alone makes me think that the salaries in professional sports are in need of adjustment. Although it is a free market and they are paid what the market supports. It's sad that it is so expensive to go to a professional event though.

Rich - Thanks for the comment. I enjoy watching college sports too. Of course money is a big part of big time college sports too. The BCS Bowl series and March Maddness prove that. There is always minor league baseball too. Reasonable ticket prices, small parks, and mostly young kids playing their hearts out to try to make to the bigs.

Scott - Thanks for the comment. The cost does keep me from going to as many games as I would like to each year.

APR

2008

I don't mind the high salaries. My take on it is that many ballplayers have to make the bulk of their lifetime earnings before they are 40. Now granted their 20 years of income (if they can remain injury free) is a lot by any standards. The thing that offsets the earnings for me is that their bodies are oftentimes so battered and broken when they do retire that they endure a lot of medical issues for the remainder of their lives. I do understand that it is their choice to play and put their body through the physical demands. I do not blame them for getting theirs.

Rich - You make a good point. How many of us would turn down that kind of money to play if we had the talent. I doubt that anyone would.

What I was thinking about when I first thought about this post was more about the great difference between the haves and the have nots. Is it fair for one team to spend over $200,000,000 on players and another to spend only $21,000,000. I thought it was unfair until I looked at the numbers. Just because you can spend a ton of money on the best players doesnt mean you will have the best team.

Boy what a shock. My first featured post. A big thank you to the powers that be that decided my ramblings are worthy of being a featured post.

Jim - I do think that big market teams definitely have a money advantedge that is quite unfair. I am always proud to see the small markets put real effort into developing their farm systems. I think it shows real commitment to the sport and to both younger players trying to make it, and veterans who develop a loyalty in part because of it! I am happy to see the small markets with low payroll being able to compete; that is sport!

BTW, you deserve the feature! Big money in all pro sports has been a hot topic for a while and is very worthy of debate.

Rich - Great comment. One team that has been able to compete every year with the next to lowest payroll in baseball is the Oakland A's. They really restocked thier farm system this year with all the big trades in the off season. Up until about 4 years ago their Single A team was about 20 minutes away from me in Modesto Ca. I got to see players like Mark Macgwire, Jose Canseco and more recently Nick Swisher play up close there. They moved about another 40 miles away from me to Stockton CA for a new park. Even in the minors it's about the money. Now we have the Modesto Nuts , the single A team for the Colorado Rockies.

MAY

2008

Your blog is a pretty good indicator that money isn't ruining the game. Heck Giambi for all his pay is absolutely horrible and somehow deflated....If the owner has the money to spend- so be it. The Rays beat the Yankees today and are in FIRST PLACE! WOW! BUT...where do the champs end up? The last 10 years of World Series winners have been in the 4 "big spending" markets Boston, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles/ Anaheim as well as 3 smallers Florida (Miami), St. Louis and Arizona...

In that same decade period, NY has lost three times but the other losers are from Colorado, San Francisco, Houston, Detroit, Atlanta, San Diego and Cleveland.....so much smaller markets still get to the series, right?

Jim - Out of the bottom 8 teams in payroll, 4 are in first place in their division and one (Oakland) is out of first by one half game. Of course its still very early in a very long season. Maybe this is an indication that we are now seeing the end of the steriod era and we have a more level playing field? Maybe it means money doesn't have as much of an effect as some people think? I think its going to be an interesting season. Thanks for the comment Jim.

MAY

2008

I'm a Tigers fan. We suffered with bad teams for years until we went to the World Series in 06. This year they spent a fortune on free agents and look where we are now, dead last. Is it the money? I guess it would be easy to come to that conclusion.

Hopefully they will turn it around before the season is too far gone.

5 ouf of baseball's six bottom-dwellers are in small markets, the other being the Yankees in, of course, the biggest.

ALL 3 AL division leaders are in big markets and 4 of 6 total...though one must take BIG and small baseball markets with a grain of salt....Detroit, SD, Phoenix (and others) are significantly more populated than Boston but Boston produces better revenue and spends significantly more on talent.

Found an ABSOLUTELY KILLER link diagraming which teams are spending wisely. It shows in the left column the records of all teams in baseball (best to worst as of yesterday the 17th) and points to that teams payroll. If you're red- you're not so hot...if you're blue- you're good....

MAY

2008

Terry - Thanks for the comment. It's still early in the season, the Tigers might yet live up to their potential.

Jim- Thanks for taking the time to read my post. That link you sent is pretty interesting. I will defintely have to check it out after a couple more months of the season.

JUL

2008

I'm a Tiger fan like Terry, and while we've clawed and scratched our way to 3rd place, we're still nowhere near showing the offensive dominance this team was projected to have. Injuries have played a large part (3 strained obliques in the last month??? What's up with that?)

I cringe when I think of all the promising players we gave up in the Miquel Cabrera/Dontrelle Willis deal. Miquel is finally swinging the bat, but Dontrelle has been a bust of mammoth proportions. He's making mega-millions to ditch his old, ineffective delivery and learn how to throw a strike in the minor leagues. Meanwhile, rookie Armando Gallaraga was brought up to replace him and has gone 7-3 with a 3.27 ERA. He's being payed a minute fraction of Dontrelle's salary. Go figure.

Sigh............maybe next year.

JUL

2008

Money is killing baseball....some people will point to the fact that the Marlins won...or the Cardinals won...but this misses the point. You can count on the Red Sox, the Yankees, the Mets, the Angles, the Dodgers, and a handful of others buying the players your 7 year old idolizes. The issue is you can no longer think the 22 year old rookie will be on your team in 10 years...you get them for 5 and if they are great they will be playing in NY, Chicago, LA, or Boston. (I am a METS fan but the situation is wrong)!

APR

This was a good article! I am a senior at pagosa springs highschool and the only thing i look forward to every day is baseball! it's very disapointing to see that the people you look up to ruin competitiveness in sports!

CODY - thanks for taking the time to read my blog. Back when I was in high school I could pretty much count on the same group of players every year on my favorite team. Now it's pretty much a new team each year. I guess I pretty much have to face the fact that any hot young prospect will only be around a couple of years before he hits the jackpot with another team. I guess thats progress!?

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