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Braves announce record earnings, but still no starting pitcher…
The Braves may have missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017, but it certainly didn’t hurt their wallets. The team’s Q4 earnings were released on Wednesday, and they showed there isn’t anybody involved with the organization that’s hurting for cash. “The club, meanwhile, posted an 11% increase in total revenue in 2025 to […] The post Braves announce record earnings, but still no starting pitcher… appeared first on SportsTalkATL.com.
The Braves may have missed the playoffs for the first time since 2017, but it certainly didn’t hurt their wallets. The team’s Q4 earnings were released on Wednesday, and they showed there isn’t anybody involved with the organization that’s hurting for cash.
“The club, meanwhile, posted an 11% increase in total revenue in 2025 to $732.5 million, and a 172% surge in adjusted operating income to $107.8 million,” Eric Fisher reports for Front Office Sports. “The Braves’ revenue from The Battery, the mixed-use development that has influenced dozens of other pro teams, grew 45% during the year to $97.4 million—a figure that by itself is more than the 2026 luxury-tax player payrolls of the Marlins and Guardians.”
“Compared to just four years ago, the Braves have added nearly $150 million to their annual revenue.”
“Among the numbers shared Wednesday was Braves Holdings’ 172% year-over-year growth in adjusted OIBDA — for those more familiar with WHIP and WAR, it’s a key measure of a company’s financial performance — from $39.7 million to $107.8 million.”
It’s no secret the Braves development of Truist Park and the surrounding Battery area has been a home run. The organization is printing money with no signs of slowing down, and now, they are taking control of their own broadcasting rights with BravesVision, a venture that should be another incredibly lucrative one for the organization.
“We are fortunate to have much of this expertise in-house at the Braves … and we have one of the largest [local] television territories in baseball, which affords us the opportunity to optimize our financial outcome and is a factor that provides us an advantage that no other Main Street team has,” McGuirk said.
Combine all of this, and the Braves are undoubtedly one of the most successful and well-run organizations in Major League Baseball. Yet, another offseason has come and gone, and Atlanta has failed to address the rotation concerns that plagued the team a year ago.
Oftentimes, when it comes to assigning blame, nuanced conversations are thrown out the window. It’s either Anthopoulos is the worst general manager in the sport, or he has no help because of the greedy executives who truly control the Braves.
The truth lies somewhere in the middle. The Braves are not a cheap organization. According to Spotrac, their 2026 payroll is sitting at about $247 million — eighth in the league and the highest it’s ever been in franchise history. Cheap ball clubs do not operate at that level. But could the Braves be spending more? Without a doubt, and these numbers confirm that. There are unequivocally other business priorities being considered outside of just building a World Series contender, which is unfortunate when looking at Atlanta’s competition like the Mets and Dodgers.
However, just because the Braves could — and probably should — be spending more, it doesn’t absolve Alex Anthopoulos of his role in all of this. His hesitation to do whatever it takes to acquire or retain top-flight starting pitchers has existed since he took the job in Atlanta. Not once has he handed out a multi-year contract to a free-agent starting pitcher, almost always opting for short-term deals with limited risk and potentially high reward.
In some instances, it’s worked marvelously, with Chris Sale being the perfect example. But more often than not, the Braves’ lack of proven pitching depth has cost the team chances at championships.
At this point, it’s fair to call it Anthopoulos’ blind spot. He spent plenty of money this offseason — enough to sign a frontline starter to a multi-year contract. But with the going rate for starting pitchers being what it is, he can’t seem to find a single one worth the value they’re receiving on the open market.
Until that changes, I’m not sure it matters what the Braves’ payroll is moving forward.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
The post Braves announce record earnings, but still no starting pitcher… appeared first on SportsTalkATL.com.
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