Major League Baseball sees historic revenues in 2013

According to a report from Forbes, Major League Baseball will see a record amount of revenue in 2013. The gross revenue number will exceed $8 billion, according to the report.

While baseball purists, ambiguous though that term is, lament the emergence of sabermetrics, the dark cloud of performance enhancing drugs and the loss of the national pastime that they think they knew in years past, by many measures the sport is healthier than ever. Maury Brown writes the following:

"And, it’s very possible that MLB could see revenues in  the $8.5-$9 billion range by this time next year. The league will see revenues double for new broadcast deals with their national network partners FOX, ESPN, and TBS that will add an additional $788.3 million a year to the league’s coffers."

Any report along these lines comes at an interesting time. Commissioner Bud Selig is on his way out, and those who follow the sport are struggling to secure any notion of what his “legacy” will be.

On the one hand, Selig will always be remembered for looking the other way while steroids ran rampant and arguably tainted an entire era. On the other hand, MLB continues to make money hand over fist under his watch. The new TV deals referenced here promise to impact the sport in the coming years and spike these numbers even more.

Baseball isn’t perfect, but the state of the game in 2013 is just fine.