It's like clockwork, seriously ... recently, every year around the Baseball Hall of Fame inductions there is news that A) Bud Selig is or isn't considering lifting the lifetime ban against Pete Rose and B) names from the list of players who tested positive in 2003 are leaked.

As for option A, Pete belongs in the Hall of Fame -- but not in baseball. I mean seriously, he has the most memorabilia in the Hall of Fame, so induction is theoretically academic. Enough of that though, I want to take a look at the steroid list and the potential economic impact on baseball.

Continue reading JockStocks: Will steroids ever drive fans away from baseball?

JockStocks: Will steroids ever drive fans away from baseball? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The 2008 Major League Baseball World Series achieved the event's lowest television ratings in history, and the league is off to a similarly lousy start to the 2009 season.

Ratings for Fox Saturday Baseball have slipped 9% since last season and 23% since 2000. The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) that Fox executives will be meeting with MLB Commissioner Bud Selig next week to try to come up with ways to boost ratings.

Executives are not panicking yet -- the real test will be the All-Star Game and the Playoffs, which account for 90% of the revenue under licensing deals.

Continue reading Why isn't anyone watching baseball?

Why isn't anyone watching baseball? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 26 May 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As of last Sunday, Major League Baseball's regular-season attendance is down nearly 4.5% this year -- including both New York clubs, according to Reuters.

Why is the inclusion of the New York Yankees and Mets important? Because the two teams opened brand new palaces this year, both of which are smaller than the parks they played in a year ago.

Before the season, baseball officials predicted that attendance could drop as much as 10% from last year's 78.6 million -- with league revenue coming in flat compared to last year's record $6.5 billion.

Continue reading JockStocks: Saving money at a baseball game

JockStocks: Saving money at a baseball game originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 22 May 2009 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Tom Hicks, the owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team and the Dallas Stars NHL franchise, has defaulted on a $525 million loan related to the teams.

Hicks has downplayed the importance of the default, saying that it's just a bargaining tactic to bring the lenders back to the bargaining table to negotiate better terms. But industry experts tell The Associated Press that that's unlikely to be the full extent of it. A default on a loan is usually a sign of serious financial problems, but analysts think that Hicks has enough equity in his teams to maintain control -- even if he does end up selling minority stakes to outside investors.

Continue reading Texas Rangers owner in a world of financial trouble

Texas Rangers owner in a world of financial trouble originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 10 May 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Yankees cut ticket prices from outrageous to 'merely' absurd

Yankees cut ticket prices from outrageous to 'merely' absurd originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Yankees overestimate demand for pricey seats

Yankees overestimate demand for pricey seats originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 28 Apr 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Part shrine, part palace -- New Yankee Stadium opens Thursday

Part shrine, part palace -- New Yankee Stadium opens Thursday originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading A salary cap in baseball?

A salary cap in baseball? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 20 Feb 2009 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading MLB teams up with the NHL to sell online video package

MLB teams up with the NHL to sell online video package originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading The Citigroup-NY Mets deal is nuts

The Citigroup-NY Mets deal is nuts originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Feb 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Last July I suggested that Citigroup (NYSE: C) should cancel its $400 million deal to put its name on the new New York Mets stadium. Although previous CEO Chuck Prince inked the 20-year deal, I called for it to be canceled after Citi posted $17 billion in losses for the first half of 2008. Not surprisingly, it took more than my blog post to push Citi to cancel the $400 million deal.

After getting $45 billion in government bailout cash and another $305 billion in loan guarantees; and canceling the delivery of a $50 million corporate jet, it comes as no surprise that Citi is beginning to realize that times have changed. But as I suggested last July, there is a rich history of companies naming stadiums after themselves and soon ceasing to exist. For instance, there used to be a stadium in Houston named after a little energy trading firm you may have heard of -- Enron.

Continue reading Citi should have canceled Mets stadium naming deal six months ago

Citi should have canceled Mets stadium naming deal six months ago originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Feb 2009 09:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading The Chicago ObamaSox?

The Chicago ObamaSox? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 Jan 2009 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Not so fast Under Armour, you're being sued by the Chicago Cubs

Not so fast Under Armour, you're being sued by the Chicago Cubs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It's a tough job market for everyone. In addition to all the investment bankers facing smaller bonuses, there's another group of people deserving of our sympathy: professional baseball players.

The sagging economy has Major League Baseball teams feeling a little bit cautious as far as free agent signings and on top of that, there is somewhat of a glut of players on the market. Experts are forecasting a drop in ticket sales, but baseball may prove to be somewhat recession proof because the deals with television networks that make up a large portion of revenue are long-term guaranteed contracts: Even if advertising revenue declines, that won't effect the league or its teams directly.

ESPN analyst Buster Olney tells BusinessWeek that the Boston Red Sox are "absolutely loaded" and well-poised to take advantage of the weak economy to score some good bargains on free agents.

The Red Sox are a great example of well-managed company. By not bowing to the pressure to overspend in good times (letting pricey free agents like Pedro Martinez and Johnny Damon walk), they have left themselves in a strong financial position that allows them to be take advantage of weakness and get more bang for their free agent buck when times are rough.

It's a shame more public companies aren't managed that way.

Tough timing for baseball's free agents originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 11 Jan 2009 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Scott Boras on why Major League Baseball is better without a Salary Cap originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 Jan 2009 09:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Does Major League Baseball need a salary cap? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Dec 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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.

Let Mark Cuban buy the Chicago Cubs! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 03 Aug 2008 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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.

Continue reading It's all disgusting: C, CFC, MBIA, MER & Roger Clemens

It's all disgusting: C, CFC, MBIA, MER & Roger Clemens originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 Feb 2008 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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.

Continue reading Will the World Series be a home run for Rupert Murdoch?

Will the World Series be a home run for Rupert Murdoch? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 01 Oct 2007 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Taking a $752,467 stand: Bonds' ball to be branded originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 26 Sep 2007 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.