Financial question - small market teams

Broth32 · 04-19-2010, 01:16 PM

I've had this problem with previous versions but was to lazy to look for an answer. If you don't use scouts/coaching it seems like small market teams (I play with the Indians) have tons of money to spend - their budget is 94 mil. I can pretty much buy any FA on the market without any concerns. I never really "feel" like a small market team. I'm guessing because they take in consideration scout/coaching cost in the budget... any thoughts?

megamanmatt · 04-19-2010, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Broth32

I've had this problem with previous versions but was to lazy to look for an answer. If you don't use scouts/coaching it seems like small market teams (I play with the Indians) have tons of money to spend - their budget is 94 mil. I can pretty much buy any FA on the market without any concerns. I never really "feel" like a small market team. I'm guessing because they take in consideration scout/coaching cost in the budget... any thoughts?

Well the only thing that makes small market teams small markets are their owners. A good example is the Pohlads. Carl had far more money than Steinbrenner ever did, he just never used any of that money on the Twins. I think it's hard to so perfectly capture an idea like that because a lot of it is tied up in the human portion of the equasion. Just my

. Part of why I never use MLB setups.

SteveP · 04-19-2010, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Broth32

I've had this problem with previous versions but was to lazy to look for an answer. If you don't use scouts/coaching it seems like small market teams (I play with the Indians) have tons of money to spend - their budget is 94 mil. I can pretty much buy any FA on the market without any concerns. I never really "feel" like a small market team. I'm guessing because they take in consideration scout/coaching cost in the budget... any thoughts?

Are you talking about the 2010 MLB game, or what?

Broth32 · 04-19-2010, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SteveP

Are you talking about the 2010 MLB game, or what?

Yes - the 2010 MLB quick start

conception · 04-19-2010, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by megamanmatt

Well the only thing that makes small market teams small markets are their owners. A good example is the Pohlads. Carl had far more money than Steinbrenner ever did, he just never used any of that money on the Twins. I think it's hard to so perfectly capture an idea like that because a lot of it is tied up in the human portion of the equasion. Just my

. Part of why I never use MLB setups.

Another factor in the current markets are the literal popularity of the team in that area which has been influenced by historical factors. For instance, numerically the Miami and Tampa Bay markets, which I am local to, are actually quite large. But there are a number of reasons why neither team has been succesful in sustaining good attendance, with the easiest example being the way that the Marlins have shamelessly sold off talent at times in their history. In my fictional universes, I can always imagine a Miami or Tampa Bay area market being quite succesful under circumstances that differ from what we see IRL.

megamanmatt · 04-19-2010, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conception

Another factor in the current markets are the literal popularity of the team in that area which has been influenced by historical factors. For instance, numerically the Miami and Tampa Bay markets, which I am local to, are actually quite large. But there are a number of reasons why neither team has been succesful in sustaining good attendance, with the easiest example being the way that the Marlins have shamelessly sold off talent at times in their history. In my fictional universes, I can always imagine a Miami or Tampa Bay area market being quite succesful under circumstances that differ from what we see IRL.

A good point. Back to my MN Twins example, with the opening of Target Field we magically have been pulled out of the "small market" category and are now a medium market team. So... honestly I have no idea who determines what's a large market or a small market, or what information they use for the determination other than "Minneapolis is smaller than New York so it is a small market."

SteveP · 04-19-2010, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Broth32

Yes - the 2010 MLB quick start

Well, I don't know if you've ever tried playing beyond just the first season, but yeah, most teams can blow all their money on FAs for a season, if they want to do that, but the consequences will show themselves in the future -- especially when it comes to signing extensions, etc.

Another answer, if you want to get deeper into it, is that the financial model in OOTP doesn't, and probably can't, duplicate the complete financial world that a team has to deal with. It's an approximation, and won't always present the same set of constraints that a specific real life GM of a specific real life team has to face.

A third answer is that you can edit the financial parameters for the teams, if you are in Commissioner mode.

Broth32 · 04-19-2010, 03:16 PM

I also posted this in the FOFC board and someone replied with a better explanation of my point:

The budgets are so high that middle/small market teams don't have to make difficult decisions on who to keep or let go nearly as often as middle/small market teams do in real life. It's almost like playing with finances turned off.

Le Grande Orange · 04-19-2010, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by megamanmatt

A good point. Back to my MN Twins example, with the opening of Target Field we magically have been pulled out of the "small market" category and are now a medium market team.

Accoring to the annual Business of Baseball article in Forbes, in 2009 the Twins took in a total of, after revenue sharing, $162 million in revenue, which ranked 24th in MLB. The league average was $196.6 million in revenue. However, with a new stadium opening in 2010, the Twins can expect, based on the experience of most other new stadiums opened in the last fifteen years, a significant boost in revenue this year.

megamanmatt · 04-19-2010, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

Accoring to the annual Business of Baseball article in Forbes, in 2009 the Twins took in a total of, after revenue sharing, $162 million in revenue, which ranked 24th in MLB. The league average was $196.6 million in revenue. However, with a new stadium opening in 2010, the Twins can expect, based on the experience of most other new stadiums opened in the last fifteen years, a significant boost in revenue this year.

Yeah, that's kind of what I meant. I'd actually like to know where they rank in ticket prices now as well.

Le Grande Orange · 04-19-2010, 03:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by megamanmatt

I'd actually like to know where they rank in ticket prices now as well.

According to the 2010 edition of the Fan Cost Index (note: link is to a PDF file), the average regular ticket price in MLB went up 1.7% to $26.79 for this season. The Twins specifically are listed as having a 45% increase in average regular ticket price for 2010, rising to $31.47, up from $21.70 last season. The average price for a premium ticket, however, declined, dropping to $70.74 from $119.41 last year.

The overall 'fan cost index' for the Twins, as defined in the article, is up 21.8% this year, compared to a league average decline of 0.6%.

megamanmatt · 04-19-2010, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Le Grande Orange

According to the 2010 edition of the Fan Cost Index (note: link is to a PDF file), the average regular ticket price in MLB went up 1.7% to $26.79 for this season. The Twins specifically are listed as having a 45% increase in average regular ticket price for 2010, rising to $31.47, up from $21.70 last season. The average price for a premium ticket, however, declined, dropping to $70.74 from $119.41 last year.

The overall 'fan cost index' for the Twins, as defined in the article, is up 21.8% this year, compared to a league average decline of 0.6%.

Whew... that is quite the increase. I'd been wondering that for some time. Back in the Dome, the Twins usually had one of, if not the, lowest ticket prices in the MLB. Was just curious.

SteveP · 04-19-2010, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Broth32

I also posted this in the FOFC board and someone replied with a better explanation of my point:

The budgets are so high that middle/small market teams don't have to make difficult decisions on who to keep or let go nearly as often as middle/small market teams do in real life. It's almost like playing with finances turned off.

Well, there certainly qualifies as an opinion ...

04-19-2010, 01:16 PM	#1
Broth32 Major Leagues Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: C-Town Posts: 385	Financial question - small market teams I've had this problem with previous versions but was to lazy to look for an answer. If you don't use scouts/coaching it seems like small market teams (I play with the Indians) have tons of money to spend - their budget is 94 mil. I can pretty much buy any FA on the market without any concerns. I never really "feel" like a small market team. I'm guessing because they take in consideration scout/coaching cost in the budget... any thoughts?

04-19-2010, 03:16 PM	#8
Broth32 Major Leagues Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: C-Town Posts: 385	I also posted this in the FOFC board and someone replied with a better explanation of my point: The budgets are so high that middle/small market teams don't have to make difficult decisions on who to keep or let go nearly as often as middle/small market teams do in real life. It's almost like playing with finances turned off.