Thanks to a readers questions, we’ve previously tackled the potential reasoning behind some of the Indians’ big trades. Next up in our series on the Tribe’s ownership we will look at the value of the Indians franchise.

Who is this seemingly ill-fated man who commands the owner’s box at Progressive Field? Let’s unmask one of Cleveland’s least adored men and gaze upon this “investment” of his: The Cleveland Indians.

Lawrence J. Dolan (any takers on the “J”?) was born in Cleveland Heights, OH in 1931. As a good Catholic boy he attended St. Ignatius High School and went on to earn a degree in law from the University of Notre Dame. Rather than jump immediately into the law practice he joined the United States Marine Corps after graduation. Two years later he returned to Northeast Ohio and worked as Geauga County’s Assistant Prosecutor. Later he would practice law privately and would eventually become president and managing partner of Thrasher, Dinsmore, & Dolan.

Before 2000, Richard Jacob’s was the owner of the Cleveland Indians. He, along with his late brother David, purchased the Tribe for $35 Million in 1986 and went on to have eight straight losing seasons. The Jacob’s owned Tribe was just about to turn a corner when the 1994 season was cut short by a labor strike. When baseball returned in 1995, the golden era of Jacob’s baseball began in Cleveland. The Tribe won 100 games and reached the World Series only to lose to the Atlanta Braves 4-2.  The Indians would go on to four more seasons of postseason baseball, winning the AL Central each time and notching an additional World Series appearance (see chart of wins below). This also marked the heart of a 455 game sellout streak lasting from 1995-2001. Three times during that streak the entire home schedule sold out before Opening Day.

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In 2000 Larry Dolan became the owner of the Cleveland Indians, purchasing the club from Richard Jacobs for a reported $323 Million.

Pause. Selah.

In 1986 the Jacob’s brothers bought the team for $35 Million. 14 years later they sold it for $323 Million. Not too shabby. When the Jacobs brothers purchased the team the Indians had endured four straight losing seasons and seven losing seasons in their last ten. A perfect opportunity to buy low. Dolan on the other had bought a team that was in the playoffs and selling out every home game for the past five years. A perfect opportunity to buy high. While his purchase price of $323 Million was 11.2% below Forbes Magazine’s $364 Million value of the team after the 1999 season, my wife, the coupon clipper, will tell you that 11.2% off is NOT a bargain.

Ok, so he bought high. But how has his investment panned out to date? Well, Dolan’s win percentage of 0.496 is essentially a push when compared to Jacobs’ 0.493. But 35.7% of Jacobs’ teams have gone to the playoffs while only 18.1% of Dolan’s even though Dolan inherited a winner while Jacobs did not.

But let’s talk value. Forbes Magazine has been publishing its Business of Baseball series since 1998 wherein each teams market value is approximated. I need to stress that these are approximations. Teams have disputed the Forbes findings with San Diego being the most recent.

Beginning with the stated value at the end of the 2009 season of $364 Million, the Dolan investment has fared thusly:

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As you can see, the fanchise enjoyed a year of seemingly residual value growth in Dolan’s first year but plummeted thereafter. The climb from $292 Million at the end of 2003 to $417 Million at the end of the AL Central Crown season of 2007 is impressive, but we’re trending again, and not in a favorable direction.

The idea has been brought up of Dolan selling the team but the club is worth less today than it was when he purchased it in 2000. So, that seems unlikely unless he is willing to find someone to pay near face value for a ball club in these struggling times. Perhaps unlikely. Odds are that if Dolan sells at all it will have to be when the value of the franchise recovers yet again. The more likely outcome is that he will leave the team to his children, as he has previously stated.

Up next: are we a small market team?

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