Pittsburgh Pirates, TV Money, Party Decks and Rockies Owner Opening Books

Pittsburgh isn’t the only place where fans are upset with ownership.  Not sure how we missed this, but Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort announced he is adding a party  deck at Coors Field for people to cheer on the Rockies and guzzle Coors Light.

Twitter exploded.

We will do our best to summarize for you, but please go read about out it… if this mess about owners, money, and getting party decks instead of a slugging first baseman interests you.  Even though it’s really old news, it still interests us.  Guess we were too busy with postseason madness in Pittsburgh and we missed all of this!

Obviously fans in fun loving, bud smoking Colorado aren’t pumped about a new party deck when the team has finished in the cellar the past two years.  It didn’t matter that the cash for the deck will be a ‘surplus’ of capital construction funds, Aramark and RTD according to the Rockies owner.

All of the uproar apparently lead the owner to open up his books.    The Rox opening day payroll was around $84 million bucks in 2013 and recorded revenues in the $170 million dollar range.

The Rockies are reportedly going to have their payroll grow to $95 million dollars this year Monfort said.

The owner said he won’t spend all of the new television money.

And this is what really caught our eye as Bill Brink from the PG noted today.  Each team in Major League Baseball will receive $54 million next year as part of MLB’s new  eight-year, $12.4 billion national television contract.  The story mentions that the deal includes this magical $27 million for each team in additional money based on the previous deal.

The big piece of the story is that MLB’s central fund is going to hold some of that money.  Since owners balked about such a move last year, it’s expected that MLB will hold $8 million from each team.  So the Bucs, and every other team, will only see $19 million from the deal if all reports are right.

"“I don’t know if other clubs are looking at it like that, but we are, we have been told (as owners), and I don’t know if it is scare tactics or not, that (each team) will pay that back this year. The way we are budgeting right now is that not only are we not getting that extra $4 million (like last season) but we will be paying back the $4 million from last year.”"

The money is going to pay for the MLB credit line for old loans, raises and in the Rox case not having the Yanks and Red Sox visit this year.

Like the Bucs, the Rockies haven’t hit it big with a monster TV deal.

Most realize that massive deals to Denny Neagle and Mike Hampton killed Colorado and the team has attempted to be fiscal responsible since those awful contracts.

The Pirates have avoided

making awful free agent signings

,  making massive mistakes in free agency with huge contracts.  What the Pirates do with the additional television revenue in 2014 is still to be determined.  What we know they won’t be doing is blowing it on monster contracts that would crush the franchise.  (So at least there’s that, right?)

It’s understandable that Rockies fans were pissed.

Although it’s obvious that they are needed, could you imagine if Bob Nutting were to announce improvements to PNC Park  after this rather quiet off season?  A few people might lose their mind.
Read more: Rockies owner Dick Monfort provides detailed look at team’s budget, financial structure – The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/rockies/ci_24630592/rockies-owner-dick-monfort-provides-detailed-look-at-teams-budget-financial-structure#ixzz2qyMfUowM