Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr.'s revenue comments mirror those of several years ago

During Major League Baseball's lockout in 2020, St. Louis Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr. told fans that the industry of being an owner of a professional baseball team isn't a profitable venture. "The industry isn't very profitable, to be honest," said DeWitt back in June of 2020.

His comments at the organization's Winter Warm Up echoed that sentiment.

Since the DeWitt family purchased the Cardinals in 1995 for $150 million, the value of the franchise has ballooned to $2.55 billion. While this increase in value isn't liquid cash, it's definitely an asset that ownership has that has grown dramatically in value in just 30 years.

Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat asked Bill DeWitt Jr. if cash flow and revenue can be linked to spending or not. The club's drastic rise in value was thrown in as an addendum by Jones, too. Bill DeWitt Jr.'s response to Jones's question was telling.

"Well, you know, we've always been in this for the long term. So it's, you know, not something we want to do on a yearly basis, is lose money," said Bill DeWitt Jr. He continued by saying there have been years where ownership has lost money and other years where they've made money. When pressed further regarding how often they lose money, DeWitt responded, "Well, put it this way. You know, our debt has gone up. We're looking forward to a lot of expenses in terms of renovating the stadium. And so, you know this, baseball is not an easy business. You know, it's very competitive. I think we have done a good job over the years of putting back any money we have into the product."

Whether the organization as a whole is in the red or black in any given year shouldn't be of consequence when owning a baseball team for the large majority of ownership groups. In 2023, the St. Louis Cardinals had a net revenue of $372 million, 13th-most in baseball. They turned around and spent 57% of that revenue on payroll in 2024, 10th-most in baseball last year. The remaining revenue was spent on facilities, staff, and other necessities.

The Cardinals aren't a publicly-owned organization, so the general public isn't privy to which years the club has lost money and which years the club has made money. The DeWitt family has every right to keep that private.

However, they owe the fans of the St. Louis Cardinals more than what's been given recently. The payroll has already been slashed by over $60 million from 2024, and there's a chance even more money is subtracted following a trade of third baseman Nolan Arenado, still president of baseball operations John Mozeliak's top item on his to-do list. To lacquer up a rebuild as a "youth movement" by ownership is disingenuous.

I fully agree with what the organization is doing underneath the hood. They've invested heavily in staff and technology across the minor leagues and player development level of the organization. They're giving young players and former top prospects a full run to prove their worth. These are all essential aspects of building a healthy organization in the modern era of baseball. Where ownership has gone wrong has been in its lies to the fans.

Don't call owning a baseball team, something only 30 individual can lay claim to, isn't profitable. Don't tell fans that you're leaning into a youth movement when in reality this offseason has been a process of simply reducing payroll.

Cardinal fans are some of the most intelligent in the sport. All we ask for is transparency in return, Mr. DeWitt.