On second and final day of the meetings with Major League Baseball’s 30 owners in New York, the topic of the pension plan for those working for clubs was discussed. The matter, first reported by Adam Rubin of ESPN New York, has been brewing for several years. According to the report, a small market club raised the issue of eliminating some pension plans, despite the league seeing record gross revenues in excess of $8 billion.

But the matter was not brought to a vote today, and no action has been taken. Sources reiterated what was said when the story first broke that the matter is not about eliminating pension for personnel, rather giving clubs more flexibility in what they offer. It was not said whether that could possibly mean the downgrading of pensions for some clubs.

At the time of the report in March, the Professional Baseball Scouts Foundation had an emergency conference call to discuss the matter. Those that have been scouts for some time were reassured that they would not be impacted by any change, but it was unknown whether new scouts would see adverse impacts, if or when, the league’s owners vote on changes to the pension plan.

Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He writes for Baseball Prospectus and is a contributor to Forbes. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here.

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The allure of the NHL outdoors in ballparks continues. The NHL and New York Yankees announced today that two outdoor regular-season NHL games will be played at Yankee Stadium during the 2013-14 season as part of the 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series.

The two games scheduled for Yankee Stadium are:

• New York Rangers at New Jersey Devils - Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014 - 12:30 p.m. ET
• New York Rangers at New York Islanders - Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014 - 7:30 p.m. ET

The two games at Yankee Stadium complete the four-game 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series  scheduled for next season. On Jan. 25, the Anaheim Ducks will play the Los Angeles Kings at Dodger Stadium. On March 1, the Chicago Blackhawks will host the Pittsburgh Penguins at Soldier Field.

"The innovative nature of the Stadium Series affords the opportunity to have all three NHL teams in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area play, outdoors, at one of the most-celebrated stadiums in the world," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "We'll be able to create a multi-faceted, multi-day experience for our fans, and we thank the teams, Coors Light, the New York Yankees and Yankee Stadium for their support of this memorable NHL event."

The 2014 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series  will be the first time Yankee Stadium has been used for hockey.

"We have long thought that Yankee Stadium would be a great venue for outdoor hockey," said Lonn Trost, New York Yankees Chief Operating Officer. "In addition to being a first-class baseball facility, Yankee Stadium was designed to house unique and memorable events, such as the NHL Stadium Series™. Hosting two of the NHL's classic rivalries at Yankee Stadium will be a great kickoff for the worldwide sporting events in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area scheduled in early 2014."

"The New Jersey Devils are proud to have been selected to host the first of two games at Yankee Stadium," said Devils President/CEO/General Manager Lou Lamoriello. "The NHL Stadium Series will be a memorable experience for our organization, our players and, most importantly, our fans. We are thrilled to play our divisional rival, while adding to the legacy of one of the nation's most recognized sports facilities."

"The New York Islanders are honored to take part in the National Hockey League's outdoor stadium series," Islanders General Manager Garth Snow said. "Our fan-base is one of the most passionate in the NHL. The support we consistently receive from our fans was on display during the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs and I expect it to be on an even greater scale when we take on the Rangers. This is what makes the games against the Rangers one of the best rivalries in the league. I look forward to seeing a strong contingent of the orange and blue in the stands at Yankee Stadium."

"The New York Rangers are honored to participate in these two historic games at Yankee Stadium, bringing hockey into the home of another one of New York's iconic sports franchises," said Rangers President & General Manager Glen Sather. "Playing hockey outdoors takes the game back to its roots and reminds us all why we laced up our skates as youngsters. We are excited to be able to bring that experience and thrill to our fans and the city of New York."

"The teams playing in these two games - the Rangers, Islanders and Devils - have tremendously loyal fans and the rivalries are intense because of their proximity and playoff history," said Mathieu Schneider, NHLPA special assistant to the Executive Director. "Yankee Stadium is a landmark venue in New York City and to see hockey played in such a celebrated setting will be extremely memorable to the players and everyone involved."

According to the NHL, further details on this special NHL event, including national broadcast information and specifics on ticket opportunities for the season-ticket holders of each team, will be released shortly. Fans interested in receiving more information on ticketing, news and special offers around the event should register at www.NHL.com/2014NewYork.

NHL Network and NHL.com will provide extensive coverage live from New York leading up to and after the games. NHL Social will have exclusive coverage on all social platforms, including the use of the hashtag #StadiumSeries.

The NHL recently announced that the 2014 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 1, when the Detroit Red Wings will host the Toronto Maple Leafs at Michigan Stadium on the University of Michigan campus. The NHL anticipates that the 2014 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic  could set a world record for attendance at a hockey game.

The first-ever NHL regular-season game contested outdoors was played in 2003 when the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Montreal Canadiens at Commonwealth Stadium. Since then, the NHL has played six additional regular-season games outdoors with 2009 (Wrigley Field between the Red Wings and Blackhawks), 2010 (Fenway Park between the Flyers and Bruins), and 2012 (at Citizens Bank Park between the Rangers and Flyers) all occurring at MLB ballparks.

Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He writes for Baseball Prospectus and is a contributor to Forbes. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here.

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Major League Baseball’s 30 owners begin their two-day quarterly meetings in New York today, and with a continued discussion around expanded instant replay. A committee that includes former and current managers Tony La Russa, Joe Torre, Jim Leyland, and Mike Scioscia  as well as executives such as Frank Robinson, John Schuerholz, and Mark Scapiro was created in 2009 to look into on-the-field matters such as instant replay. The media has focused more closely on instant replay in recent weeks after a blown call during the Angels-Astros game last week that saw umpire crew chief Fieldin Culbreth suspended two-games and fined for misapplication of the Official Baseball Rules. According to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports! there is “support, approval and, most vital, funding from ownership” into looking at expanded instant replay. But, according to sources, don’t expect any changes to come about immediately. While there is support, how it is implemented and to what degree is still something that could have 30 differing views.

Beyond committee meetings, nothing earth-shattering is expected to come out of the meetings that occur today and tomorrow (although, anything is possible). While “something” could come out of the meetings, sources indicate there will not be movement on two languishing issues.

As has been the case since 2009, there is not expected to be any recommendations or movement on the issue of the Oakland Athletics moving to San Jose. With San Jose being part of the San Francisco Giants territory the current World Series Champions aren’t in any hurry to relinquish the market.

The Dodgers still await MLB’s approval on what is expected to be a $6 to possibly $8 billion television deal, and there has been a massive explosion in television rights fees across the league. With it, there has been renewed focus on the league’s blackout policy. Both MLB and the NHL are defendants in a class-action lawsuit, and Senator John McCain (R-AZ) last week introduced the Television Consumer Freedom Act that would allow consumers to purchase channels on an a la carte basis. This could impact MLB Network and other networks, as well as league blackout policies. In speaking to the Senate Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet yesterday, McCain said that as part of the bill it, “seeks to end sports blackouts for teams that play in publicly financed stadiums. The antiquated government blackout rules were created in 1975 and are unfair to taxpayers who finance the vast majority of major stadiums these days.”

And yet with this renewed pressure nothing is on the agenda for the quarterly meetings to address the blackout policy at the local and regional level. As part of the new national television deal with FOX that kicks in next year, nationally broadcasted games that were previously blacked out on MLB Extra Innings and MLB.TV due to an exclusivity agreement will be lifted. But that’s just the Saturday game of the week. The issue of local and regional blackouts—at least for the time being—are expected to remain.

Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He writes for Baseball Prospectus and is a contributor to Forbes. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here.

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Houston Astros owner Jim Crane is a smart man. One doesn’t get rich and build global business without being as such. But there’s some advice that he needs when it comes to owning and running an MLB club, and it’s this:

Slow down.

I get that you saw the need to fix aspects of the organization. You might even have wanted to put your own stamp on it, but since before you purchased the club actions—some not all of your doing—have transpired that when taken in total are scaring fans off now, and possibly in the future.

McLane Dumps Salary to Make the Sale

To make the sale happen, Crane worked with former owner Drayton McLane. For the better part of two seasons, McLane shed player payroll. This helped not only with the sale, but played into a strategy that Crane is deploying now: strip out most everyone but prospects and rebuild.

The Move to the American League

I said not everything is of Crane’s doing, and this is one of them. As part of the sale the league pushed the Astros into the American League. It is the first time in the history of MLB that a team has moved from the NL to the AL.

The Complete Gutting of the Front Office

When McLane left, pretty much everyone else in the front office went, as well. Be it Tal Smith, or Ed Wade as examples, “out with the old, in with the new” came with the sale. This isn’t uncommon. In fact, those that watch the comings and goings in sports business expect it. It’s change that comes with change.

Rebranding

This is actually a smart move, and makes sense, but it’s (again) just one more thing. With the move to the American League, the club rebranded itself based on the old Houston Astros logos. New colors… new logos… something else that is new for fans to try and absorb.

Pain for Gain

While there are some that see the method upon which the Astros are rebuilding as a bit radical (this author included), it’s always difficult to say to your fan base that you’re rebuilding. Given how drastic the plan is, it could be several seasons before the Astros are competitive, and that banks on decisions that are being made pan out. Fans don’t like it, but if the pains are short, they might live with it. Several seasons can rot a fan base. Don’t believe me? Ask the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Launch of CSN Houston

As part of the grand design, getting into a regional sports network was in the works at the purchase. This was a smart move in the overall, but adds to the mountain of change. To date, the RSN isn’t being carried by any of the major carriers such as DirecTV or Time Warner Cable. That’s hurt the club as many fans simply can’t watch Astros games.

George Postolos Resigns as President and CEO

 Maybe it was not being able to get CSN Houston those needed carriage deals. Maybe it was something else. But yesterday, George Postolos, the President and CEO of the Astros resigned. In speaking with sources close to the matter, the club currently has no one to replace him, nor are they done in searching for one. It’s been just over a year since Crane purchased the club, and the highest-placed exec below Crane has left the building. Yet more instability.

Astros Cancel Annual Fundraiser for Houston Area Women's Center

On the same day that Postolos resigned, the Astros made a move with a charitable foundation. This latest move is not only another change, it’s very bad PR. The Astros canceled The Black Ties and Baseball Caps gala that was an annual event at Minute Maid Park put on by the Astros Wives Organization. According to the club, the team’s charitable foundation is changing directions and will focus on at-risk youth and youth baseball programs and the Astros Wives Organization has been officially disbanded. Women’s center CEO Rebecca White said losing the money is a huge setback.

"I don’t know if we will cut anything because we can’t. We have to serve the people who come to our doors," White said. "The alternatives are too horrible to imagine."

Add it All Up, and You Need to Slow Down

To Mr. Crane, one needs to treat the ownership of sports clubs differently than other businesses. If you don’t think that applying business methods that work in other industry fails when it comes to sports ownership, take some time and sit down with Kansas City Royals owner David Glass. The herky-jerky, all-too-fast changes that you are making not only are doing damage to your short-term fan loss, you’re likely setting up losses far into your tenure. Remember, you’re only a steward of the Astros for a relatively short time. The Astros will be around a lot longer than you or I. What you’re doing now could have broad reaching effects on the Houston fan base. Before you do more, why don’t you let fans try to acclimate to everything that’s been thrust upon them. They’re probably woozy just reading this, let alone living through it.

Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He writes for Baseball Prospectus and is a contributor to Forbes. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here.

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The Houston Astros have announced that George Postolos has resigned as President and CEO of the club. Postolos was cited as being instrumental in working with Astros Owner and Chairman Jim Crane and his group in the purchase of the Astros, had been Astros President and CEO since November of 2011. He worked for seven years with Crane to acquire a sports franchise.

“I am very proud of what Jim accomplished with my help – acquiring a major league franchise with a strong and diverse ownership group, developing and implementing a good plan for the team’s future, and assembling a first rate management team,” Postolos said. “I look forward to helping other investors pursue their objectives in sports knowing that Jim and the Astros organization are off to a great start and well positioned for future success.” 

Postolos will be returning to his consulting practice advising investors on acquisitions and strategy in major league sports. There is currently no information on a successor or plans to search for one, although the possibility is there that it could happen in the coming days. A looming question that will inevitably surface is the status of former Astros and Rangers Hall of Fame pitcher, Nolan Ryan. Ryan, who was reportedly on the edge of resigning from the Rangers as CEO after the  Rangers promoted general manager Jon Daniels and Rick George, said just after the start of the season that he was staying with the organization, but it’s unclear what—if anything—was done to make that contractually binding.

During his tenure with the Astros, Postolos spearheaded several changes within the organization, including the Astros overall rebranding process, which included new team uniforms, colors and logos. Postolos also revamped the marketing and foundation departments and emphasized the importance of feedback from Astros fans, taking part in several face-to-face meetings with Astros season ticket holders and long-time fans. 

Under his guidance, the Astros nearly tripled the size of the ticket sales staff dedicated to providing relationship-based services to their clients.

“We appreciate George’s hard work in the acquisition of the Astros and his commitment to the organization,” Crane said. “I’d also like to personally thank him for the assistance that he has provided to me over the last several years and wish him the best of luck in the future.” 

More details as they become available.

Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He writes for Baseball Prospectus and is a contributor to Forbes. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here.

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I worry for the revisionist history that is now being made and will be chronicled in books about sports. Those researching to make a case for or against the popularity of one or the other will look to attendance figures as a way to say how many fans went to view games as they happened in ballparks, stadiums, and arenas at the time. Those that may have actually been at a particular event will have a different view than what is published. They’ll see more empty seats than history reports.

This is not some objective matter (although the amount one sees isn't an exacting science). The fact is, the announced number at virtually every pro and colligate sporting event is vastly higher than the actually number of fans that are there.

Since the ‘90s, Major League Baseball has counted “paid attendance” or the number of tickets sold, rather than how many people were actually at the ballpark. This coincided with the adoption of revenue-sharing. The logic works like this: what really matters to the owners and the league is how much ticket revenue is generated that then counts towards revenue-sharing totals. At least MLB doesn’t count comps, VIPs, and media as other leagues and colleges do, but that doesn’t mean MLB doesn’t count deeply discounted tickets in the announced paid attendance figures just the same as one that is paid at full price.

So, to the owners and the league, the matter is one of tracking the ledger. The problem is, they’re more than happy to use the numbers to paint a different picture. Here’s the first sentence of a press release last year touting overall attendance health (bolding by author):

Major League Baseball announced today that the 30 Clubs drew 74,859,268 fans in the 2012 regular season, representing the game’s highest attendance since 2008 and the fifth best single-season attendance in Baseball history.

This simply isn’t so. What happened was nearly 75 million tickets were sold. Not that many attended.

In fact, numbers have swirled about that no-show rates can be as high as approx. 17 percent. If that were true, and we apply it to MLB’s totals for the 2012 season, we get this:

17% of 74,859,268 tickets sold = 62,133,192 actual fans attended

It’s this difference of approx.12.7 million fans that is at issue. You could make a case that MLB (and for that matter, the NFL, NHL, NBA, MLS, et al) should announce in the box score the actual number of fans that attended the games. After all, the paid attendance figure is really only for internal purposes, so keep the numbers that way… internal. The reason that the league won’t announce actual numbers is that it would be a PR nightmare. As it stands, there have been several games that have had paid attendance announced at under 10,000. Reporting actual attendance of around 8,000-8,500 a game would be a massive black eye.

In fairness, not every ballpark sees no-shows. As mentioned, MLB does not count comps, VIPs, or media in the paid attendance figures. In the case of some clubs that are seeing wild popularity, a ballpark can be over capacity with nothing but standing room only available. Those SROs get counted as “paid attendance” as one has to purchase a ticket to get in.

Still, this is more the exception, not the rule. There are far more ballparks with less people in them than announced as opposed to more. So, your eyes aren’t lying, the box score is. The leagues will rationalize this as a change that needed to take place for accounting purposes, but you can darn well believe that if the numbers somehow came out negatively so, they’d not use them. They numbers announced at each game prop up the attendance numbers… history be damned. Just try to remember that in the future when you read books on a given sports popularity. Ghosts in the seats don’t count.

Maury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey. He writes for Baseball Prospectus and is a contributor to Forbes. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted here.

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