Making It in the Minors

This book is about the successful operation of a sports franchise. While there are many sports-related books about what happens on the playing field, there are few written about the equally interesting but seldom told stories of what happens on the business side. Why does someone acquire a professional sports team? What goes into the branding, marketing and entertainment that make some teams successful, and others not? What are the key challenges that managers, athletic directors and other sports staff face? Are there valuable lessons from the major and minor leagues for university, high school and other amateur sports programs? Do sports teams generate a profit? And if so, how? While the examples are drawn from the business of minor league baseball, the lessons are equally applicable to all other sports, and even to many retail businesses.

Arthur P. Solomon has been a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Teachnology, a partner on Wall Street, a real estate developer and the owner of two minor league baseball teams. He lives in Providence, Rhode Islands, and Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Allyn I. Freeman is an experienced writer for television and the author of numerous books about business, entrepreneurship and sports. He lives in New York City.