On Tuesday, the New York Yankees announced a $2.6 billion financial agreement with Apollo Sports Capital in a deal that allows the Yankees to refinance existing debt and pursue new ventures. The deal values the Yankees at $10 billion, according to The Athletic, which would be a record valuation for an MLB franchise.
"We are continually seeking ways to strengthen our positioning, and this partnership allows us to explore pursuing strategic opportunities," Yankees chairman Hal Steinbrenner, whose family will maintain control of the franchise, said in a statement.
Player representatives hope the Yankees will use the $2.6 billion cash infusion to add players. From The Athletic:
"It's great for the fans and the sport to see a team take an aggressive step to compete," said Joel Wolfe, who heads up the baseball division at the powerful agency The Team. "The constant drumbeat from the commissioner's office complaining about baseball's decline has become stale."
"The one thing this indicates is that the appreciation of baseball franchises has been immense in the last six months to a year," said another top agent, Scott Boras. "Private equity is not paying $2.6 billion for a small percentage of the Yankees unless they're doing quite well. The private equity analysis is strictly based on profit."
The Yankees' partnership with Apollo comes as MLB and the MLB Players Association inch closer toward an offseason lockout, with a salary cap as the most hotly contested issue. MLB says a salary cap is needed for competitive balance reasons, but make no mistake, it would boost franchise values and that is a driving force behind the owners' push for a salary cap.
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Next week, MLB owners are expected to vote on and approve the sale of the San Diego Padres to José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones, which is the final step before the transfer of majority control. The $3.9 billion reported sale price will be a record for an MLB franchise and not by a little. The previous record is the $2.4 billion Steve Cohen paid for the New York Mets in 2020.
The Padres' sale and the Yankees' partnership with Apollo show that yes, business is very good, even if MLB's owners like to pretend it isn't. The collective bargaining agreement expires at 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 1, and the owners are expected to lock out the players at that time. The last lockout extended into early March. There's no sense in speculating how long this one will last.
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