Forbes evaluates Colorado Rockies franchise worth at $1 billion

The Colorado Rockies have been evaluated at $1 billion, according to Forbes’ yearly baseball franchise values list released Tuesday.

The Rockies’ value is up from $860 million, a 16 percent jump.

The club also jumped up three spots in the MLB ranks from No. 26 to No. 23 most valued franchise.

The average MLB team is worth $1.54 billion, 19% more than one year ago, which means the Rockies are below the MLB average and are not gaining value at the same rate as other clubs.

Values were driven higher by new local television deals that are increasing at roughly a two-fold rate, surging profitability, and the escalating value of Major League Baseball Advanced Media, the Internet and technology arm of MLB.

The TV deals are huge. The massive ones the big market teams means the small market teams, who are soon to sign, are set to cash in.

MLB has the second highest franchise behind the NFL.

Baseball’s 30 teams posted an average operating income (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of $34 million, 52% more than the 2015 season (the previous record).

Despite this growth, player costs have not increased as fast. In 2016, MLB’s 30 teams had an aggregate revenue of $9.03 billion, 7.5% more than the previous season. But player costs-—payrolls, signing bonuses and benefits—rose just 3.5 percent, to $4.56 billion in 2016.

Only five teams in baseball, the Dodgers being the only in the NL West operated at a loss in 2016.

The new collective bargaining agreement means it’s hard to try to find a trend in these numbers with everything changing to ready to change for MLB and MLBPA.

A big addition to the added value across MLB is MLBAM.

Major League Baseball Advanced Media, owned equally by each of MLB’s 30 teams, was formed in 2000 with the dual mandate of providing baseball fans in all markets with great technology and creating a valuable asset. With new partnerships ranging from League of Legends and Discovery Communications, to ESPN and the NHL, to say those objectives were met would be a gross understatement. BAMTech (now two-thirds owned by MLB as a result of separate deals last year with Disney and the NHL) is worth around $3.5 billion, and MLBAM, excluding BAMTech, is worth approximately $12 billion.

Thus, baseball’s stakes in BAMTech and MLBAM likely contribute between $400 million to $500 million in value to each of baseball’s 30 teams. You can listen to my podcast with Maury Brown about the business of MLBAM

The Yankees remain the highest valued franchise in MLB at $3.7 billion while the Rays come in last at $825 million.