Forbes released its list of the most valuable Major League Baseball clubs and the Cardinals rank near the top — St. Louis is rated as the 10th most valuable club at $2.55 billion. You can view the full list below:
New York Yankees - $7.55B
Los Angeles Dodgers - $5.45B
Boston Red Sox - $4.5B
Chicago Cubs - $4.22B
San Francisco Giants - $3.8B
New York Mets - $3B
Philadelphia Phillies - $2.92B
Atlanta Braves - $2.8B
Los Angeles Angels - $2.7B
St. Louis Cardinals - $2.55B
According to Forbes, much of the team’s valuation comes from the city and stadium, not so much the on-field product, which tracks with the team’s current status. In 2023, the Cardinals had their worst season in 34 years and saw a record low in TV viewership because of it. That being said, even a record-low viewership total ranked second in the league for local sports viewing behind the Phillies.
Last season was an improvement at 83-79 but still saw the team far on the outside looking into the playoffs. Now, the team is staring at a new season without Paul Goldschmidt, who left for the New York Yankees in the offseason. Presently, sportsbooks have the Cardinals’ win total in the mid-70s, which would no doubt result in yet another disappointing year.
The Cards are the second-most valuable NL Central franchise behind the Chicago Cubs and the seventh-highest valuable National League franchise behind the Dodgers, Cubs, Giants, Mets, Phillies, and Braves.