The baseball players’ union says it has found evidence teams acted in concert against signing Barry Bonds but it reached an agreement with the commissioner’s office to delay the filing of any grievance.

That makes sense seeing as how not one offer has been put on the table for the prolific scorer.

In Major League Baseball, does a heavy investment in team payroll translate into success?  How do teams measure “success,” for that matter?   If the beancounters are consulted, success = high attendance.  If fans are consulted, success = a winning team, or at least exciting baseball games to attend, with a hope of contending.  Owners undoubtedly measure success by high revenues collected through a combination of ticket sales (where shared gate revenue can add up when your team has a loyal following around the country like the Red Sox Nation or fans are simply clamoring to see a once-in-a-generation talent like Barry Bonds), TV contracts (like the lucrative YES network for the Yankees), corporate sponsors, revenue sharing costs, stadium rent, and club standing in the league all figure in.

Major League Baseball is currently enjoying NFL like monetary success with team owners, “getting rich like never before. During 2007, revenue for MLB’s 30 teams went up 7.7%, to $5.5 billion. The average team is now worth $472 million, 9.5% higher than last year and 143% more than when Forbes first calculated team values in 1998. Again the Bronx Bombers sit atop baseball with a value of $1.3 billion. George Steinbrenner, who paid $10 million for the team in 1973, could probably teach Warren Buffett a thing or two about investing.”

So, the question remains, does significant monetary investment via payroll translate into a winning season?  Below is a breakdown of current league standings with, compared with player payroll and average attendance. (Current Standings and Average Attendance are ytd 2008 - half hearted apologies for the uneven alignment of the numbers I blame wordpress.)

AL East                             Payroll                    Rank      Ave. Attendance
Boston RedSox               $133,440,037                1                    37,594
Tampa Bay Devil Rays    $43,820,598                  2                    18,445
Baltimore Orioles           $67,196,248                   3                     22,933
Toronto Blue Jays           $98,641,957                  4                     25,485
New York Yankees         $209,081,579               5                     50,981

AL Central
Chicago WhiteSox          $121,152,667                  1                      25,789
Minnesota Twins           $62,182,767                     2                      24,677
Cleveland Indians          $78,970,067                     3                      23,109
Kansas City Royals        $58,245,500                    4                       18,616
Detroit Tigers                $138,685,197                   5                       37,726

AL West
Los Angeles Angels      $119,216,333                  1                        39,438
Oakland Athletics         $47,967,126                    2                        19,954
Texas Rangers              $68,239,551                    3                        22,880
Seattle Mariners            $117,993,982                  4                        26,472

NL East
Florida Marlins               $21,836,500                 1                         14,973
Atlanta Braves                $102,424,018               2                         29,648
Philadelphia Phillies       $98,269,881                 3                         38,864
New York Mets               $138,293,378              4                         49,625
Washington Nationals    $54,961,000                 5                         29,154

NL Central
Chicago Cubs                $118,595,833               1                         40,035
St. Louis Cardinals        $100,624,450               2                          40,846
Houston Astros             $88,930,415                  3                          33,793
Milwaukee Brewers        $81,004,167                4                          33,822
Pittsburg Pirates            $49,365,283                  5                         16,283
Cincinnati Reds             $74,277,695                 6                          21,169

NL West
Arizona DiamondBacks $66,202,713                1                          28,047
Los Angeles Dodgers    $118,536,038              2                          46,533
Colorado Rockies          $68,655,500                3                          32,276
San Francisco Giants     $76,904,500                4                          33,544
San Diego Padres          $73,677,617                5                          30,852

The Diamondbacks, Marlins, A’s, Twins and Devil Rays (all small market teams) are all at the top of their divisions and with the lowest (or 2^nd lowest) respective payrolls in their divisions.  However, most of these teams also draw low attendance even though they’re at the top of their respective divisions, so winning doesn’t necessarily translate into larger crowds and more money for the owner(s). Conversely, the WhiteSox, RedSox, Angels and Cubbies all have large payrolls, are ranked number #1 in their division, and enjoy solid attendance numbers. 

Therefore, it seems that success has more to do with the market in which the team is located, the stadium, a loyal fan base, big names on the roster and a glimmer of hope in the standings than it does with winning on a shoe string budget.  Fans, who today pay a lot to go to these games, like to see familiar faces and big names in nice parks.  Winning is still important to fans, but a loyal base and big market (see the Yankees) will keep the stadium packed even if they suck.     

It bears noting that all of these numbers are reflective of an early season.  With the NBA and NHL playoffs in full swing, baseball is taking a back seat to these sports until the All Star Break.  Let’s look at the numbers again in the fall and see where the teams stand then.