With the signings of C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira, The New York Yankees have signed the three biggest contracts of the off-season.

That spending spree is raising concerns about competitive balance in baseball, and Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark Attanasio is none too pleased. In an email to Bloomberg, he wrote that "At the rate the Yankees are going, I'm not sure anyone can compete with them. Frankly, the sport might need a salary cap."

In a phone interview with Bloomberg, he added that "I paid $220 million for my team; now they get three players for $420 million." Brewers assistant general manager Gord Ash had some fighting words for the Yankees: "This is very reminiscent of what they have tried before. It didn't work then, and I'm not sure it's going to work now."

Whether baseball will ever end up with a salary cap is an open question. Under the current system, teams that spend huge sums of money on players are required to pay a "luxury tax" to the league, but that seems to do little to dissuade these signings.

For the sport as a business, a salary cap seems to be the way to go. This arms race hurts profitability for all teams, and it certainly seems to be having a negative impact on team values. According to Forbes, the average National Football League team, which operates under a salary cap with non-guaranteed contracts, is worth $1.04 billion. In baseball, only the Yankees are valued at more than $1 billion, and the league average is just $472 million.

Sam Zell is looking to unload the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise that came with his ill-timed $8.2 billion acquisition of Tribune Media Co., and the most aggressive suitor appears to be dot-com billionaire Mark Cuban. The New York Times reports that he offered $1.3 billion for the the team, Wrigley Field, and the team's stake in Comcast SportsNet Chicago.

But of course, Cuban, who has accumulated $1.7 million in fines during his tenure as owner of the Dallas Mavericks, is not without his critics, to say the least. He's too arrogant, too brash, and not gentlemanly enough, they say. He had trouble cracking into the old boy's network of the NBA, and Major League Baseball is said to be even more reluctant to change.

But if Cuban is the high bidder -- and the league will let him in -- it'll be a great day for the Cubs and for baseball. The team hasn't won a World Series since 1908 but, given Cuban's deep pockets and superhuman competitive drive, the Cubs would likely get the extra boost they need to finally win one. Plus, Cubs and Cuban have the same first three letters, so it's pretty much meant to be.

Baseball has dealt with a lot of scandal lately involving performance-enhancing drugs, and it's about time we added a passionate renegade to the current regime of old bureaucrats. And yes, I'm talking to you Ted Lerner.

Are you disgusted yet? This week MBIA (NYSE: MBI) testified -- no they lobbied, hmm, actually they complained -- well the truth is they whined to Congress that short-seller William Ackman had trashed its reputation, and its stock for personal gain -- gee, no kidding -- but the big problem is he seems to have been correct to a major extent. For more on this see MBIA asks Congress to fight its battles with Ackman by Peter Cohan or MBIA plays the spooky short-seller card by Zac Bissonnette.

I own MBIA shares and recently "adventured" into more, but it was not based on management crying foul and everything being just fine. I did it because I think the company will work through the mess over time and that it is oversold now based on fear. MBIA needs to focus on cleaning up its exposure to risk and underwriting standards and stop looking for scapegoats.

Others are in the same boat. There are times the squirming around the truth is painful to watch. This week we watched a baseball pitching icon, Roger Clemens, remind us once again of the first rule of holes: "If you're in one, stop digging." I'm afraid this truism that I often refer to will continue to be a recurring theme in my stories every so often, because some folks just don't get it.

News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) Chief Executive Rupert Murdoch is probably too busy plotting world domination to spend much time worrying about something trivial like baseball -- until now.

America's pastime is about to start post-season play, most of which will be televised on the company's Fox television network. Already, there was one huge surprise as the Philadelphia Phillies overtook the New York Mets to win the National League East. But this isn't the type of surprise that the media mogul probably likes because a team from a smaller media market beat one from a larger one.

Remember that last year's series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers had record-low television ratings. Advertisers pay a premium price for television spots on the World Series because of the huge audience it attracts. Fox probably has guaranteed that the commercials will be seen by a set amount of viewers and must refund money to advertisers if these targets aren't hit.

During the past week or so, fashion designer Marc Ecko has been tabulating votes to decide what to do with Barry Bonds' 756th home-run ball. The three choices offered in an online poll were: Bestow It, Brand It, Banish It.

The fans have spoken, and door-number-2 was selected; the ball -- bought by Ecko for $752,467 -- will be marked with an asterisk before being handed over to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. According to the site Ecko set up for the express purpose of voting, 34% favored giving the ball, unblemished, to the Hall of Fame. 19% of voters wanted the ball banished, and 47% preferred branding it. The asterisk merely serves as a permanent reminder that Hank Aaron's record was toppled by someone facing allegations of steroid use. Bonds has repeatedly denied knowingly taking any performance-enhancing drugs.

Ecko and Hall of Fame president Dale Petroskey both appeared on NBC's Today show to discuss the matter. Petroskey noted that, regardless of the asterisk, "We're happy to get [the ball] ... we're a nonprofit history museum, so this ball wouldn't be coming to Cooperstown without Marc Ecko buying it from the fan who caught it."

Bonds, naturally, had a compelling opinion on the matter, telling The San Francisco Chronicle, "[Marc Ecko's] stupid. He's an idiot ... What he's doing is stupid."

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

Many people are puzzled over Sam Zell's highly leveraged $8.2 billion purchase of the Tribune Co. in light of the decline in the newspaper business. One of the diamonds in the deal, however, is the Chicago Cubs, and indications are that he intends to quickly mine that gem for all it's worth.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the Tribune Co.'s (NYSE:TRB) avowed intention to sell the Cubbies may be considerably more complex than most franchise sales. The Tribune owns not only the ball club, but also the ballpark, and 25% of the cable TV network that carries its broadcasts, and could choose to sell them separately.

The Cubs, despite a century-long title drought, continue to draw capacity crowds to legendary Wrigley Field, over three million last year alone. This year, to the surprise of most prognosticators, the team is fighting for the NL Central pennant, great timing for the sellers. According to Forbes, the team alone is currently worth $592 million, on an operating income of $22 million.

Walt Disney Corp. (NYSE: DIS), Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) may be tempted to pick up the Yankee Entertainment & Sports Network, the cable TV channel that broadcasts the baseball team's games which Bloomberg News said could be worth as much as $2 billion.

The channel, whose owners include Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) and former New Jersey Nets owner Raymond Chambers, is "running a limited check" and would only consider selling if it got a price "reflecting its real value," spokesman Peter Rose told Bloomberg. Funny guy to be quoted in a baseball story. I guess anything is for sale at the right price. What an original concept.

It will be an interesting test of wills between Disney's ESPN and Comcast. ESPN remains a juggernaut for the house that Mickey built. Comcast is trying to challenge ESPN with its Comcast SportsNet channels including the one I watch in Philadelphia that broadcasts Phillies games.

Remember, we're talking about the Yankees here, one of the most recognized though not necessarily loved franchises in baseball. New Yorkers, though, continue to love their Bronx Bombers even though they have struggled this year.

But the time the YES network is sold, however, slugger Alex Rodriguez will have left the Big Apple for parts unknown. With $2 billion in the bank, I'm sure the team could afford to replace him.

"June swoon." "Lovable losers." "Completely Useless By September." The beleaguered and disrespected Chicago Cubs are a storied franchise with an historic ballpark, enthusiastic and loyal fans, and a supposed "curse" that has followed the team for nearly a century. In recent years, things have rolled even further downhill. In 2003, one misguided fan contributed to the team's elimination from the National League Championship Series. In 2005 and 2006, Cubs fans had to watch as their respective cross-city and division rivals, the Chicago White Sox and the St. Louis Cardinals, earned the World-Champion title.

For the boys in blue, it's time for a change, and maybe a new owner is just what the club needs as it approaches the 2008 season, marking the 100-year mark from the Cubs' last World-Series victory. For the past 26 years, publishing firm Tribune (NYSE: TRB) has owned the ball club, but as it progresses through its $8.2 billion buyout to Windy City real-estate mogul Sam Zell, it is planning a sale of the Cubs for somewhere close to $1 billion (Tribune acquired the team in 1981 for $21 million.) The deal, record-setting for the sporting world if it tops $1 billion, would include the ivy-covered walls of Wrigley Field and a 25% stake in Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) Sportsnet Chicago.

Last night, Allan Kreda commented on how Barry Bonds' personal bottom line might fare if (when) he topples Hank Aaron's home-run record (he's currently 10 runs shy at 746). The controversial slugger is lacking in lucrative endorsement deals and facing hefty legal fees. Not that I feel too badly for the guy.

One group that is hoping to benefit as Bonds continues to chase the record is television broadcasters. Polarizing personality or not, Barry Bonds is keeping baseball fans interested in seeing a new entry in the record books (even if an asterisk is involved).

Walt Disney's (NYSE: DIS) ESPN is hoping to break into its normally scheduled programming whenever Bonds comes to bat once there is the potential to tie or break the record. News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) FOX is working with Major League Baseball to air an extra game (outside of its set broadcast schedule) when the record-breaking is imminent.

How much money would Barry Bonds be worth if he liked the media and the media liked him? That is the proverbial $64,000 question with the brawny outfielder just 10 home runs shy of Hank Aaron's career home run record of 755.

The 42-year-old Bonds has a one-year $16 million contract with the San Francisco Giants and if he has saved and invested well during his lucrative playing years, he should have no financial worries heading into his life after baseball. His career earnings dating back to his rookie season with Pittsburgh in 1986 are at least $172 million. But with potential legal bills mounting, Bonds is probably saving every penny he can. He still may be indicted by federal prosecutors on charges of perjury and he could be fined hefty amounts by the U.S. government in tax penalties.

With all this going on for the soon-to-be home run king, he's practically invisible on the endorsement front. Companies don't want to go anywhere near Bonds because of still unproven suspicions of steroid use. That and his general unfriendliness towards the media, and he really is alone on an island most days at the ballpark. But that didn't seem to bother him much this week as the Giants visited Shea Stadium and the New York Mets.

Bonds didn't even speak to the media before the first game of the series on Tuesday. The most intriguing aspect of the Bonds home run-record chase is how Aaron himself says he won't attend when the record is broken. And Commissioner Bud Selig has not confirmed whether he will attend either. Some way for baseball to treat its most hallowed record. The same Major League Baseball which clearly turned its collective heads the other way when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa (both bulked up beyond rational belief) were chasing Roger Maris' single season record of 61 in 1998. McGwire went on to hit 70 dingers that summer, a record Bonds surpassed with 73 in 2001.

Will Bonds ever reap the financial rewards of the record he's about to shatter? The answer, quite clearly, is no.

What lessons can investors learn from the return of Roger Clemens to the Yankees next week, possibly against the Boston Red Sox? Plenty.

Like great investors, great baseball executives know where to find value. On the face of it, spending lots of money on a 44-year-old pitcher seems like a poor investment. But this isn't just any player. Clemens has already won 348 games, along with seven Cy Young Awards, making him one of the best to ever play the game.

The Yankees are going to pay him an astounding $4.5 million per month for four months work. That works out to about $9,000 per pitch regardless whether they are balls or strikes. Sure is nice work if you can get it, but is Yankee owner George Steinbrenner going to get his money's worth from Clemens? They have to reach the postseason, period.

The Bronx Bombers faced a double-digit deficit to the Red Sox last weekend, before rebounding slightly. They've been forced to start a record seven rookies in the team's first 42 games, so adding Clemens surely will be a welcome injection for the decimated starting staff.

Maybe it was the smugness Christian Laettner displayed during my formative years, or the subtle differences between NBA and NCAA Basketball rules, but professional basketball has always been my least favorite of the major sports.

I am impressed, however, with the National Basketball Association's acknowledgment of the digital age. Today, the league announced that it has rolled out a video-download store, at which fans can purchase digital copies of playoff games for $3 a pop. Entire series are available for $13 each, with a full playoff season available for $80.

The league's vice president of interactive services was quoted by the New York Times as saying "great games and surprising results have driven the most popular downloads." Among the heaviest downloads have been the series between the Golden State Warriors and the Dallas Mavericks, as well as last year's final championship-series match-up between the Mavericks and the Miami Heat.

The NBA is the first of the major sports organizations to offer such a service, though other leagues are reportedly converting game footage into digital clips in order to satiate fan demand. An executive with Major League Baseball reveals the league's plans to introduce a video-search product later this year, allowing fans to search through hundreds of clips to find specific highlights (which will likely be available for free). The National Football League is introducing a video-heavy version of its web site this summer and exploring the ramifications of offering historical video footage.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

Cable stocks were down a bit with the market this morning as Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX), Time Warner Cable (TWC), and Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) are all lower. The one bit of possibly troubling news is the potential agreement between Major League Baseball getting the exclusive "Away-Game" pact with DirectTV Group, Inc. (NYSE:DTV). The weak stock market is hurting even DirecTV, with DTV shares down over 1% right after the open.

For a satellite company to get an exclusive on away-games is simply flabergasting. This deal is certain to have many critics. DirecTV sent a letter to the FCC on Friday detailing its $700 million deal over a 7-year period starting in 2009. Senator John Kerry has also asked the FCC to investigate the deal.

The away-game package has been available through iNDemand for some time, but this would be exclusive to DirecTV and via the league's website. INHD is available as part of the high-def offerings from cable operators and is owned by INDEMAND Networks, whose shareholders are Comcast INDEMAND Holdings, Inc., Cox Communications Holdings, Inc., and Time Warner Entertainment - Advance/Newhouse Partnership.

Sirius Satellite Radio CFO, David J. Frear, will be doing double duty over the next several months. His controller, Edward Weber Jr., has resigned. Weber is off to bigger and better things (for his own career, maybe) as CFO of Major League Baseball Advanced Media.

Is this a case of a major member of the management team jumping ship, or is Sirius acting as farm team? Either way, it can't be good news for the satellite radio company.