The New York Yankees all but print their own money. The Boston Red Sox charge NBA-level ticket prices and deliver telecasts through their own cable television network.
And then there are the Angels, with ticket prices below the major league average, no cable channel to call their own and a patchwork TV schedule that nets them barely one-third the television revenue of the Dodgers.
The Yankees, Red Sox and Angels are the only major league teams to start the season with player payrolls of more than $100 million. Yet, as the Angels play their home opener tonight against the Seattle Mariners, new owner Arte Moreno insists he can sustain a payroll close to $100 million while keeping ticket prices near the major league average and without incurring enormous financial losses.
"You can't put all the pressure on the individual fan to finance the team," Moreno said.
The Walt Disney Co. said it lost money on the Angels in each of its seven seasons of ownership, with payrolls far smaller. Moreno expects to lose $15 million to $20 million this season but plans to break even next season, with the same fundamentals any business would use -- cutting costs and increasing revenue.
Beyond then, to turn the Angels into a profitable enterprise, Moreno plans to deliver a perennial contender, controlling costs with a revitalized minor league system while selling the Angels beyond Orange County and across Southern California, tapping into the wallets of fans, advertisers and broadcasters.
"He's built a baseball team to match a business model," said John Carpino, the Angels' senior vice president of sales and marketing.
His business plan calls for the Angels to generate $140 million in revenue this season and $155 million next season, which would rank the team among the top 10 in the major leagues. The Angels generated $120 million last season.
In 2001, the Angels ranked 20th among the 30 teams, at $91 million, below such industry weaklings as the Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Brewers, according to figures provided to Congress.
The cheers might be loudest tonight for outfielder Vladimir Guerrero, 28, the grand prize in Moreno's $146-million free-agent spending spree.
Said Moreno: "Nobody divides by the number of years. These players are young players. We're building for the long term."
