Forbes Ranks Friars 19th In '08 Value

Forbes Magazine's 2008 edition of SportsMoney Baseball has ranked John Moores' Padres as the 19th most valuable club in Major League Baseball at $385M (out of 30). This represents an 11% increase over last year's valuation and has the Friars increasing in value 22% more than average club during that period. That puts Moores ahead nearly threefold on paper in real dollars, as he paid $94M for the club in 1994 ($131.5M in 2008 dollars). The magazine supports the frequent Friar explanation that stadium debt service is handcuffing the team while also noting an increase in money for signing draftees and building the new complex in the Dominican Republic. The Padres reportedly posted $23.6M in operating profit (before taxes, interest, depreciation, and amortization) against $167M in revenue. Positively, Forbes has slotted the Padres in a respectable 7th place in their "Payroll vs. Performance" ranking. Other NL West teams scored as follows (team: value, payroll v. performance):

• Arizona: 20th, 9th


• Colorado: 21st, 2nd


• Los Angeles: 4th, 28th


• San Fransisco: 8th, 27th

We'll likely hear this debt service argument come up again this season as the trade deadline approaches (or if one of the club's aging outfielders goes down). In an interesting note, Forbes didn't mention the club's TV revenues as a problem, though this has been sited in the past by the front office. It's a good thing that Kevin Tower's status as a "sludge merchant" has been upheld by the magazine's ranking of the Padres as the 7th best at payroll vs. performance.