Forbes Ranks Texas Rangers 13th-Most Valuable Franchise in MLB
Forbes has been valuing Major League Baseball franchises annually since 1998. Their 2020 rankings comes at a unique time as the sports world is shut down amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.
It also comes at a unique time for the Texas Rangers, who were set to open Globe Life Field, their $1.2 billion brand new ballpark, just last week. Until sports leagues are given the "all clear" from federal public health experts and officials, Globe Life Field sits eerily empty.
For the third year in a row, the Rangers sit 13th overall in Forbes' annual valuing of the 30 MLB clubs. According to Forbes, the Rangers are worth $1.75 billion, a six-percent increase from 2019. The New York Yankees were once again first overall at $5 billion, while Los Angeles Dodgers ($3.4 billion), Boston Red Sox ($3.3 billion), Chicago Cubs ($3.2 billion), and San Francisco Giants ($3.1 billion) round out the top-five.
The Rangers are third within their own division in Forbes' rankings. The Los Angeles Angels sit atop the AL West at $1.975 billion (ninth overall), while the Houston Astros are valued at $1.85 billion (11th overall). The Seattle Mariners are valued at $1.6 billion (16th overall), while the Oakland Athletics are in the bottom-five in all of baseball at $1.1 billion (26th overall).
Who knows when baseball will be able to return to any semblance of normalcy. We may get baseball in 2020, but it will likely look a lot different. There's a very good possibility that if there is baseball this year, a portion of the season will be played sans fans.
This obviously kills the overall revenue in Major League Baseball, which set a record-high in revenue at $10.7 billion in 2019.
When baseball is able to return to business as usual, Globe Life Field will surely be a massive source of revenue for the Rangers. Attendance will likely be high just because of the allure of a new ballpark, not to mention the retractable roof at Globe Life Field incentivizes fans to attend more often on Sunday afternoons in June, July, and August. If the Rangers can also put a winner on the field, that will also give fans more reason to come out and catch a ballgame in Arlington.
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