MLB's economic disparity "leads to revenue envy and the
perpetual call to share revenue," according to HBO's Jack
Whitaker on "Real Sports." For the '99 season, the bottom
six MLB payrolls will range from the Twins at $12-15M to the
Pirates at about $24M, while the six highest team payrolls
will range from the Indians at around $75M to the Dodgers at
close to $90.5M. But Pirates Owner Kevin McClatchy, the
"youngest owner in baseball, is trying to convince the
titans of the game to share their wealth, for the general
good of baseball." One result of those efforts may be that
small market teams "might try to move their franchises into
the rich team's cities, pouching some of their market in the
process." McClatchy: "I'm sure the Baltimore Orioles are a
big advocate of no more revenue sharing. But if we don't do
something to solve the problems, you will see teams move.
That will have a significant effect on the Baltimore Orioles
revenues. And so, I think, if I were the Baltimore Orioles,
I would push more for revenue sharing, than I would be
pushing teams to come in to my backyard" (HBO, 3/22).
ANALYZE THIS: MLB Commissioner Bud Selig's study group
on MLB economics includes McClatchy, and while Selig
declined to be interviewed by "Real Sports," former MLB
Commissioner Fay Vincent said he had the same idea, but
"like many of my ideas, it turned out to be a disaster. It
was a waste of time. This problem is bigger than any
committee. ... The union is simply not going to do anything.
Look, this offseason made the case. Why would they change
anything? When Kevin Brown got what he got, when Piazza got
what he got ... The players would say, 'You're out of your
mind. Why would you change a system that is producing these
results? The owners may be crazy, but leave them alone.'"
Whitaker noted Rangers Owner Tom Hicks' effort to establish
his own RSN to increase team revenue, becoming "another
member of the roster of rich teams, that without a salary
cap, will be unwilling to share revenue" with teams like the
Pirates. Hicks: "We're working real hard, and we have put
in place the assets that are going to be very profitable for
us over time. We're not going to share the good stuff and
keep all the bad stuff [increasing player salaries with no
cap]." But Whitaker responded, "The union has been adamant
in saying there'll be no cap." Hicks: "You have 85 to 90
percent of their constituents who are unhappy because they
don't have a chance to win when the season opens. The union
is going to change" ("Real Sports," HBO, 3/22).
