Well, it's the beginning of April again, which means Opening Day for Major League Baseball. This year, Opening Day begins on April 3, and it hosts the Cardinals v. Pirates, Mets v. Royals, and Blue Jays v. Rays. While April 3 is technically Opening Day, the event of Opening "Day" goes on for two days.
Opening Day has been a greatly important event in the MLB for quite a while, and that shows in the revenue it earns. Back in 2010, Opening Day earned $6.3 billion, earning most of that amount (28 percent, to be exact), through gate receipts. Four years later, it earned $8 billion (23 percent in gate receipts). Last season, Opening Day earned the league $9.5 billion. There didn't seem to be any statistics, but it's probably a lot of the same.
While gate receipts were of the highest percentage, another factor that continued to do well was national media. The MLB has deals with TV stations like ESPN, FOX, and TBS. In addition to that, they have local TV stations, as well as the MLB Network. All of this helps contribute to the high percentage of money that goes into those billion dollar revenue amounts.
Another percentage contributing to those amounts is sponsorships. This can be seen on uniforms (Nike, Majestic, Rawlings, Under Armour, and Reebok), food/beverage brands (Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Anheuser-Busch, Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Kellog's, and Taco Bell), and even medicine/supplement brands (Bayer, Alka Seltzer, and One A Day). There are others, but these are some of the main ones.
As you can see, the MLB makes a lot of money off Opening Day. Why? Well, it's simple. You. You, the fans, who tune in and watch, eat their foods, and wear their clothing brands. There's nothing wrong with this either. It's just something interesting to think about. Also, it may be a good business to go into if you're interested in sports.
Now that the finance part is finished, I would like to write about teams I think will do well this season.
1. Kansas City Royals
Kansas City has been in the World Series last two seasons (won last year), and even though they've had some player losses and injuries (Greg Holland, tear in right ulnar collateral ligament, needed Tommy John surgery), they should still be fine. They resigned Chris Young, which helped. I believe they'll still make the playoffs at least.
2. Houston Astros
The Astros shocked the world last year when they finished 86-76, and made the playoffs for the first time since 2005. Personally, I don't think this was just a fluke either. They still have players like Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, and Dallas Keuchel, which will help them to another playoff run.
3. Chicago Cubs
I know, I know, you're thinking, "Dude, the Cubs and Astros were just a fluke. That won't happen again."
Guess what, guys? I don't really care what you think (just kidding), I think they'll do fine. They got Jason Hayward in the offseason, as well as Ben Zobrist. They also have some good young talent such as Kris Bryant. With those players, as well as the confidence they have, they may be good enough to reach the World Series this year.
I can't wait to see what this season has in store, I can't wait to see who makes the World Series, and last, but not least, I can't wait to see how much money Opening Day brings in this year.
