Pirates' Revenues Rise While Payroll Plummets

PITTSBURGH, PA - The latest financial figures available on the Pittsburgh Pirates validates the chief complaint of long-suffering fans who haven’t seen a World Series title in 40 years: The team is insufferably cheap.

According to Forbes' annual Business of Baseball analysis, the Pirates operating revenue increased $4 million last year, jumping to $39 million from $35 million in 2017. Yet the Pirates’ payroll has fallen from $91 million last year to $77 million in 2019, according to Spotrac, the largest online sports team and player contract resource.

The current payroll ranks 27th out of Major League Baseball’s 30 teams and well below the league average of $134 million.

The Pirates' value increased 1 percent in 2018 to $1.27 billion, which ranks 20th in baseball. The New York Yankees are baseball's highest valued team at $4.6 billion. The Miami Marlins were dead last at $1 billion.

Forbes compiled its analysis by speaking with sports bankers, team executives and industry analysts. They also reviewed available team documents and stadium leases.

Forbes painted a picture of the Pirates as a franchise with an increasingly disinterested fan base. That’s largely attributable to the team not having won so much as a division championship since 1992 and frustration over owner Bob Nutting’s steadfast unwillingness to spend money on the team’s payroll.

“The Pirates won 82 games in 2018, their first winning season in three years. But the team only drew an average of 18,786 at PNC Park, third-fewest in baseball and 21 percent less than 2017,” Forbes noted.

“The Pirates also face a dwindling television audience. In 2018, the team had an average rating on AT&T Pittsburgh of 4.62, 28 percent below the previous season and the third-biggest year-over-year decline in Major League Baseball Fans were frustrated with the team trading franchise cornerstones Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole. The frustration continued this winter with the lack of free agent signings.”