The Dodgers are still not worth as much as their purchase price, according to Forbes magazine’s latest MLB franchise valuations released Wednesday.
Forbes places the Dodgers’ value at $1.615 billion, less than the $2 million paid a year ago by Guggenheim Baseball Management but more than the $1.37 billion the franchise was valued at a year ago.
Among all MLB teams the Dodgers are second only to the Yankees, valued at $2.3 billion, and one of only four billion-dollar franchises along with the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs.
Forbes’ list of values for all 30 teams can be found here.
Of the Dodgers, Forbes writes:
Guggenheim Baseball purchased the Dodgers and the team’s stadium for $2 billion from Frank McCourt in May, 2012. The enterprise value for the nearby real estate that McCourt owned was $300 million (McCourt kicked in half of the land and Guggenheim Baseball paid $150 million for the other half). The Dodgers have come to terms with Time Warner Cable for a long-term $7 billion television deal beginning with the 2014 season which would include the creation of a regional sports network. The deal has yet to be reviewed by Major League Baseball. The Dodgers opening day payroll in 2012 was $105 million, but this year’s is over $200 million thanks to a flurry of trades, contract extensions and free agent signings.