Making It in the Minors: A Team Owner's Lessons in the Business of Baseball

by Arthur P. Solomon, Allyn I. Freeman

Overview

There are many sports-related books about what happens on the playing field, but few are written about the equally interesting stories of what happens on the business side.

Why acquire a professional sports team? What goes into the branding, marketing and entertainment that make some teams successful, and others not? What are the challenges that managers and staff face? Are there valuable lessons from the major and minor leagues for university, high school and other amateur sports programs? How do sports teams generate a profit?

While the examples are drawn from the business of baseball, the lessons are applicable to other sports and many retail businesses.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786468676
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Publication date:	10/30/2012
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	707,319
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Arthur P. Solomon has been a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a partner on Wall Street, a real estate developer and the owner of two minor league baseball teams which have been awarded the Larry MacPhail and Bob Freitas awards. He lives in Providence, Rhode Island, and Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Allyn I. Freeman is an experienced writer for television and author of numerous books about business, entrepreneurship and sports. He lives in New York City.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Preface 1

1 New Sports Owner, New Breed 3

2 Building the Brand, It's More Than Sports 27

3 Creating Partnerships 47

4 Customizing Advertising and Promotions 67

5 Family Events and Family Entertainment 85

6 The Core, Ancillary and Complementary Businesses 105

7 Hiring and Training the Professional Staff 124

8 The Economics of Professional Baseball 142

9 A Successful Sports Franchise 162

10 Reflections of a Baseball Junkie 180

Index 195

What People are Saying About This

Stephen A. Greyser

"Whether curious fans or aspiring executives, readers will welcome this hands-on guide to building and managing a successful minor league baseball club." (Stephen A. Greyser, Harvard Business School.)

Editorial Reviews

Whether curious fans or aspiring executives, readers will welcome this hands-on guide to building and managing a successful minor league baseball club. With stories and examples, Arthur Solomon shares his knowledge, experience and enthusiasm to take us behind the scenes of the real world of club ownership and management, where he has been so successful.”—Stephen A. Greyser, Harvard Business School.

From the Publisher

Whether curious fans or aspiring executives, readers will welcome this hands-on guide to building and managing a successful minor league baseball club. With stories and examples, Arthur Solomon shares his knowledge, experience and enthusiasm to take us behind the scenes of the real world of club ownership and management, where he has been so successful.

Harvard Business School - Stephen A. Greyser