The Giants and the A’s didn’t provide Bay Area baseball fans much to cheer about on the field last season, but both teams’ bottom lines were big winners.
Despite missing the playoffs, the Giants turned the second-largest profit in the majors last season ($74.9 million), while the A’s were the 16th-most profitable team ($29 million) despite losing 100 games for just the second time in Oakland franchise history and ranking dead last among the 30 teams in attendance.
Those were just a few of the surprising financial details to come out of Forbes’ annual report of MLB valuations, which was released Thursday. MLB values reached record highs – and profits – despite a season that was delayed by a lockout and media rights squabbles.
According to the report, the Giants are the fifth-most valuable franchise in the majors at $3.7 billion. The Yankees top the list by a wide margin – $7.1 billion – followed by the Dodgers ($4.8B), the Red Sox ($4.5B) and the Cubs ($4.1B).
The Giants’ value went up six percent, according to the report, despite a disappointing season that saw them go 81-81 and finish third in the NL West after a captivating 2021 that included the franchise’s first division title in nine years. The Giants reportedly made $421 million in revenue last season despite ranking 12th in the majors in attendance. The Giants’ payroll of about $162 million last season ranked 12th (the Dodgers were first at $270M), according to Spotrac.com.
The Giants didn’t add Aaron Judge or Carlos Correa, but their payroll is projected at closer to $183 million this season after several free-agent additions like Michael Conforto and Mitch Haniger.
The initial report from Forbes placed the A’s fifth in all of baseball in profit from 2022, with an operating income of $62 million. Forbes assistant managing editor Mike Ozanian said a correction was applied because the initial calculation gave the A’s a full share of revenue sharing. But as was reported last season by multiple outlets, Oakland only received a quarter of a share, requiring the correction and recalculation.
Still, the $29 million profit could be frustrating for A’s fans who have seen all of the team’s biggest stars jettisoned over the past 14 months as the franchise battles the city of Oakland over a potential stadium deal – all the while with the threat of a move to Las Vegas looming overhead.
Forbes ranked the A’s 29th in franchise value ($1.18B) – ahead of only the Marlins ($1B). The A’s were the only team in the majors to fail to average more than 10,000 fans (9,973) and four times drew fewer than 3,000 to the aging Coliseum.
The A’s have one of the worst media contracts in baseball, too. So how did the A’s manage to still make more money than any team other than their cross-bay rivals, the Mariners ($83.8M), the Red Sox ($71.6M) and the Orioles ($64.7M)?
The A’s had the second-lowest payroll, around $50 million, and also received about $9 million in revenue sharing to go along with revenue of about $212 million, according to Forbes. The A’s figure to be profitable again this season no matter how they do on the field: They will reportedly receive $20 million in revenue sharing and their payroll is estimated at about $58 million according to Fangraphs.
Interestingly, the top two teams that lost money in 2022 made the playoffs: The Mets ($138.5M) and the Padres (55.2M). Another playoff team, the Blue Jays, lost $33.7 million, fourth between the White Sox ($53.4M) and the Twins ($30.3M).
