By Jordan Kobritz, J.D., C.P.A.,
If you consider his impact on the finances of the sport, Marvin Miller, who passed away last month at the age of 95, was easily one of the five most influential people in the history of Major League Baseball. The exact rank may be subject to debate, but the list includes Babe Ruth, Branch Rickey, Jackie Robinson, Miller and Bud Selig, in chronological order.
Some people may be surprised at the inclusion of Selig in that group. However, despite some mishaps, the commissioner has kept thirty owners, most of whom are billionaire egomaniacs with diverse backgrounds and different motives for owning an MLB team, in line while at the same time negotiating with what many believe to be the strongest union in the country, all while shepherding the sport through more than two decades of labor peace and financial prosperity. In addition to his reported $22 million salary, Bud should also be an annual nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. If you think what Bud has accomplished is easy, compare his resume with that of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman who has presided over — some would say instigated — three lockouts in the last eighteen years at a loss of more than two full seasons of games…and counting.
Ruth, Rickey and Robinson are already in the Baseball Hall of Fame and Selig is a lock for the Hall the first year he is eligible. Miller has been on the ballot five times and failed to garner the necessary votes for enshrinement on each occasion, although he fell a mere one vote short in 2010 despite a Veteran’s Committee that was stacked against him. Miller’s “crime” was that he sat across the table from baseball owners and executives for sixteen years while they repeatedly shot themselves in the foot during negotiations with the players’ union. Of course, Miller deserves some credit for management’s losses, but as he was quick to point out, he merely focused on obtaining what was right and fair for his employers – the players – and the combined incompetence and egos of the owners played right into his hands.
Miller has not been an active participant in MLBPA affairs for thirty years but Major League owners and executives have memories like elephants and are well aware of Miller’s accomplishments. Contrary to their beliefs, owners have benefited as much, if not more, from Miller’s successes as the players have.
When Miller became the first executive director of the players’ union in 1966, the average MLB salary was $19,000, overall league revenue was $50 million and franchise values were $5 million (George Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees for $10 million in 1973). Today, the average salary is $3.2 million. Last year, league revenue was approximately $7.5 billion and is expected to rise to $9 billion by 2014. The Dodgers recently sold for $2 billion. That isn’t the average franchise value, but neither is it the highest. When the Yankees are officially on the market, expect the bidding to be in the $3 billion range, with the YES Network worth another $2-3 billion.
Certainly Miller shouldn’t be given all the credit for the explosion in salaries, revenue and franchise values over the past 45 years, but there’s no doubt that his greatest success, the strength of the union, led to free agency and salary arbitration. Those accomplishments have not only heightened the game’s popularity but forced the owners and players to work together in a true partnership to promote the game, which resulted in an explosion in revenue that benefitted all parties.
As Miller repeatedly said, the fact that he was not elected to the Hall was more a reflection on the voters than it was on him. Now that he is gone, and owners will be spared his induction speech – which was sure to boil the blood of his long-time adversaries – it is likely Miller will be voted in next year when he appears on the ballot for the sixth time, too late for him to enjoy the moment he so richly deserved.
I spent many an hour talking – actually, listening – to Miller discuss in detail his negotiations with the owners, his preparation, approach and goals during the years he spent as executive director of the union. He was both articulate and objective in describing events that in some cases occurred more than forty years ago. Miller had the ability to break issues down to a level that could be understood by the common man.
During one class in my Business of Sports course at the University of Wyoming, the students were enraptured as Miller responded to their questions via a conference call. Hearing Miller speak was like listening to an oral history of the labor movement in MLB.
Although you couldn’t get anyone in management to confirm it, Miller also had an infectious sense of humor. I tried to convince him that the stories he told about key figures he dealt with – the ones he told about Steinbrenner were especially entertaining – would make great fodder for another book. (Note: His book, A Whole Different Ballgame should be required reading for anyone interested in the business of baseball or labor relations.) He always demurred, saying he had no need for the money. I tried to convince him it wasn’t about him. He could designate the book revenue to scholarships for students studying sports business or labor, but alas, to no avail.
The difference between Miller and every labor leader in every other team sport can easily be seen by reference to the negotiations — strong-arm tactics would be more accurate — that have taken place during the past year. First, the NFL locked out its players, followed by the NBA. Players in both leagues “gave back” hundreds-of-millions-of dollars in revenue. The NHL, jealous of the success of its sister leagues, locked out its players in September and is on the precipice of losing a full season of games for the second time in the past eight years. MLB, on the other hand, negotiated an extension of its CBA with the players without rancor and without resorting to threats or a work stoppage.
The reason why other sports are still experiencing labor-management unrest is because their union leaders failed to follow Miller’s formula: Build a strong union by educating the members on the issues and unite them in purpose. The stronger the union, the more likely management is to negotiate an equitable agreement with the players, one that benefits all parties, the sport and the fans, rather than resort to lockouts.
Miller’s legacy will be fully realized when labor leaders in other sports also recognize that and follow his example.
Jordan Kobritz is a former attorney, CPA, and Minor League Baseball team owner. He is currently a Professor and Chair of the Sport Management Department at SUNY Cortland.
