Millions of people around the world watch baseball, hoping their team brings home a championship ring. Lately, however, it seems Major League Baseball (MLB) owners and the league commissioner are more focused on maximizing profits than on giving fans—and players—the quality of gameplay the deserve.
Owning a baseball team is a challenging endeavour—one that involves intelligent moves and calculated decision-making. The current MLB istration appears to prioritize raising prices and increasing revenue over preserving the aspects of the game that fans love. To some owners, baseball is merely a lucrative investment, not a ion.
Baseball’s, first and foremost, a business. It creates thousands of jobs, generates revenue through sponsorships and endorsements, boosts city economies, and gives fans something to be hopeful for. But it’s also a sport grounded in loyalty and excitement for its fans, and they deserve to see the game they love.
Without the fans, no team would generate any revenue.
In recent years, MLB has made some interesting rule changes aimed at increasing viewership. Some of these, like the pitch clock, have been positive—it shortens the game’s running time by about 30 minutes and improves the pace. However, many of the changes, such as the automatic runner on second base in extra innings, the ban on defensive shifts, and the introduction of a draft lottery to discourage tanking, have detracted from the fan experience.
While these changes were intended to make the game more entertaining and fairer, they ultimately remove the elements that die-hard fans appreciate most.
These rules remove the parts of baseball die-hard fans love. The automatic runner on second removes the excitement of extra-inning games, the ban on defensive shifts makes it harder for players to effectively play defence, and the draft lottery complicates the rebuilding process. The real reason for these rule changes was to generate more revenue for the league while sacrificing the fans’ enjoyment.
It’s not an issue for baseball to drive in more money, it does become an issue when owners get greedy and start to ruin their teams when their teams don’t perform, or their fans lose interest.
So why invest in a baseball team when you already know it’s going to be difficult? Money. Take Mr. Fisher for example.
John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics, is widely considered to be the worst owner in baseball. When the team began losing fans, instead of investing in a rebuild, he doubled down on tanking, effectively destroying the Oakland A’s. When Fisher first bought the A’s, his goal was to win a championship and build a new stadium in Oakland. Since neither goal was achieved, he appears to have given up on those ambitions altogether.
The Oakland A’s played their last home game in the Oakland Coliseum on Sept. 26, leaving fans—especially those who cherished the legacy depicted in Moneyball—disappointed and saddened.
This is where many owners go wrong. They treat players as commodities, assuming g big contracts alone will guarantee success. But that’s not how baseball works. Building a competitive team requires chemistry, a mix of power hitters, hitters, speedy baserunners, effective relievers, and ace pitchers. Teams also need strategic play—bunts, steals, defensive positioning, and poise under pressure. Without these elements, even teams with star-studded rosters can struggle to win.
This strategy creates an uneven spread of talent and makes the game less exciting. It would be far better to see half the MLB teams with strong local talent rather than a few “super teams” hoarding multiple star players. Yet, as evidenced by the struggles of the 2023 NY Yankees and the 2022 LA Dodgers, a big payroll doesn’t always lead to playoff success.
Last offseason, the Dodgers organization found a way to exceed their available budget. The Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani, a generational two-way player, to a $700 million contract—$2 million every year until 2034; after that, it’s $68 million yearly for the next 10 years. This makes Shohei Ohtani the highest-paid athlete in any sport. Ever.
While this investment paid off with the Dodgers winning the 2024 World Series, this approach isn’t guaranteed to succeed. Teams like the 2021 Giants, the 2019 Astros, the 2004 Cardinals, and the 2001 Mariners all had incredible seasons but fell short of a championship. In the eyes of ownership, these seasons are often seen as failures—disappointing for both the money invested and the fans.
When big-budget teams struggle, they usually two options: stick with the current roster and hope something turns around, or clean house and spend half a decade rebuilding.
Rebuilds are supposed to help teams get back to a competitive standpoint. Teams draft elite prospects, develop them, trade strategically, and invest in a few veterans. The 2024 Baltimore Orioles, for example, acquired some impressive young talent but were still swept in the playoffs. However, the new draft lottery system makes rebuilding even harder, as it removes the certainty of securing top draft picks.
Even MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has said owning a baseball team is a bad investment, suggesting one would earn more by investing in the S&P 500—a remark many baseball fans find frustrating. In actuality, baseball investments would have a higher return rate than the stock exchange.
Money and greed are problems plaguing many major sports leagues. It’s an issue that ruins the experiences of fans who have to pay $8 for a hotdog. Yes, teams and their owners need to make a profit, but it takes away from the beauty of the game.
If MLB’s istration would crack down on the handful of greedy owners, real change could be made to prevent the sport’s decline.
For starters, introducing a salary cap and floor could prevent super teams and encourage a fairer spread of talent. Returning to a performance-based draft order, rather than a random lottery, would also facilitate rebuilding efforts. Additionally, improving the quality of fan merchandise and investing in better uniforms would enhance fans’ overall experience.
The question isn’t about making baseball more popular—it’s about restoring its former glory. Unfortunately, none of this can happen until Rob Manfred and MLB’s leadership recognize the long-term damage that greed is causing.
Baseball isn’t going to die, but if it continues to be more and more about the money and less about the sport itself, it could.
Tags
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s) in Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be ed, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to [email protected].