THE SYSTEMIC ISSUE AT THE TOP OF THE MLB- MLB Owners

There is a major issue plaguing Major League Baseball and it’s none other than the owners. I’m not one for too much oversight or control. However, in this case, things need to change. For too long rich white dudes (with the exception of a small few) have been allowed to purchase MLB teams and treat them as assets in an investment portfolio. The franchises and their fan bases are the victims. Let’s talk about the three worst offenders as we enter what is sure to be a mediocre 2025 season ahead for them. The Pittsburgh Pirates, the Chicago White Sox, and the Athletics of, well, the homeless Athletics.

 The Pittsburgh Pirates have been owned by the Nutting family since 1996 with Robert Nutting being the principal owner since 2007, or as I prefer to call him Bob Knowsnutting. Which is admittedly a poor choice of nickname seeing that bob is worth over a billion dollars. He knows a few things for sure, and one of those things is that you don’t have to invest in a team or win games to remain profitable. You just have to be willing to extort a community and continue to rake in the cash at the gates. Bob’s front office claims that they only use gate money (IE: Tickets and concessions) when evaluating how much payroll they can afford. Let’s take a look at the numbers. The 2023 season showed $309m in revenue and only $85.7m spent on player payroll. PNC Park is a beautiful home of a franchise that could compete for a pennant this year had they just secured 2-3 players to boost the roster. Instead, we will likely see the real pirate of the Allegheny stealing from the community and stealing the next three years from top MLB pitcher Paul Skeens.

 The White Sox of Southside and their owner Jerry Reinsdorf may be breaking up. Reinsdorf has reportedly stated he is “open to selling the team” which is the best news the fan base has received since learning that Sammy Sosa would be leaving Wriglyville for the friendly confines of Camden Yard. 2025 will be a great place to follow your team on the road. I was there last year with my wife Jaymie who hails from the beautiful pacific northwest for a Mariners game. I can only describe the environment as sad. The fans are there, and they want to enjoy the product on the field. The facility was beautiful, one of our favorites we visited that season. However, between the dominating performance put on by Seattle and the rain that rolled in mid-game. The crowd was deflated. We were two of just seventeen thousand in attendance that day and as the rain began to fall it wasn’t enough to stop play on the field, but it was enough to drive the locals out of their seats seeking the coverage of the concourse. Now, you will never catch me being a “fair weather fan” but I don’t blame them, if you’re going to show up to watch your team set the all-time losing record you might as well try and stay dry in the process. A sale of the team to a motivated ownership group is the best thing that could happen for the staff and fans. The team announced that the stadium sponsor had has changed their name from Guaranteed Rate to just Guaranteed, making the facility Guaranteed Field. The only guarantee this season for the White Sox will unfortunately be them missing the post season and no nationally televised games.

 Now we will look at the Athletics. Where do we start? We could tell John Fischer that he is an asshole and should have just taken the Alameda County offer of a three-year lease and invested in the Coliseum as a respect to the history of baseball in the bay and the fans who have made it possible. We could demand a sale, oh wait, we did. The fans from the town are justified in expecting the team to stay and for Fischer to sell. Would it really have been that hard to sell the franchise and use that money to build your new baby in Vegas? Fischer himself has set a precedence for such activity. Fischer was a part owner with his daddy across the bay in the city, before selling his stake in the Giants to purchase the A’s. it’s been nothing but an abusive relationship since he became the majority owner in 2005.

Bring your thoughts and opinions to the comments. As a baseball romantic I may be a Mets fan, but I see you all. I may have Steve “daddy” Cohen now, but I lived through the Wilpon era in Queens. I visit your stadiums and enjoy the games with fans from all around the league. Your frustrations are valid.

Thank you to my fellow writers for the following references:

Luke, W. by. (2023, December 14). The pirates’ new TV deal was probably the best possible outcome. Bucco Ball. https://buccoball.wordpress.com/2023/12/14/the-pirates-new-tv-deal-was-probably-the-best-possible-outcome/

Pittsburgh pirates on the Forbes MLB Team Valuations List (no date) Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/teams/pittsburgh-pirates/ (Accessed: 23 March 2025).

MLB opening day payroll by team 2024 | statista. Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/236206/payroll-of-major-league-baseball-teams/ (Accessed: 23 March 2025).