Descriptive Statistics Paper
Running head: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS PAPER
Descriptive Statistics Paper
Mickey Gahan, Tony Goss, Gerry Camacho and Rob Jacobson
University of Phoenix
Research Process Paper
Few sports have had the social impact that baseball has had over the years. Baseball has long been the all-American pastime. Baseball parks in most major cities across the U.S. attract families including children with dreams of becoming a baseball player. Although ballpark attendance is near 75 million, the cost to operate a major league team is substantial. Salaries alone for 2005 were over 2 billion (University of Phoenix, 2004). This number has increased nearly five-fold over the previous 10 years (USA Today, 2008). People pay to see the best athletes in all sports, not just baseball. Baseball owners analyze data to determine if paying their players higher salaries will pay off by increasing the attendance in ballparks. The data collected in the Major League Baseball Data set is typical data which owners will analyze to determine if paying higher salaries will increase overall profitability.
Purpose of Research The purpose of this research is to determine whether or not increasing the budget for player salaries will increase the attendance in ballparks. Baseball is not unlike any other business where the name of the game is to make money. Players’ salaries are a large part of the overall expenditures owners face. A baseball owner must make critical decisions when determining the salaries to pay players. For example, in 2005 the New York Yankees paid an estimated 208 million in player salaries. This same year the Yankees had a league leading attendance of over 4 million baseball fans (ESPN, 2008). This may be a mere coincidence or may be a smart business decision by the New York Yankees. The budget for player salaries can have a huge impact on the organization. The organization will suffer revenue
Descriptive Statistics Paper
Mickey Gahan, Tony Goss, Gerry Camacho and Rob Jacobson
University of Phoenix
Research Process Paper
Few sports have had the social impact that baseball has had over the years. Baseball has long been the all-American pastime. Baseball parks in most major cities across the U.S. attract families including children with dreams of becoming a baseball player. Although ballpark attendance is near 75 million, the cost to operate a major league team is substantial. Salaries alone for 2005 were over 2 billion (University of Phoenix, 2004). This number has increased nearly five-fold over the previous 10 years (USA Today, 2008). People pay to see the best athletes in all sports, not just baseball. Baseball owners analyze data to determine if paying their players higher salaries will pay off by increasing the attendance in ballparks. The data collected in the Major League Baseball Data set is typical data which owners will analyze to determine if paying higher salaries will increase overall profitability.
Purpose of Research The purpose of this research is to determine whether or not increasing the budget for player salaries will increase the attendance in ballparks. Baseball is not unlike any other business where the name of the game is to make money. Players’ salaries are a large part of the overall expenditures owners face. A baseball owner must make critical decisions when determining the salaries to pay players. For example, in 2005 the New York Yankees paid an estimated 208 million in player salaries. This same year the Yankees had a league leading attendance of over 4 million baseball fans (ESPN, 2008). This may be a mere coincidence or may be a smart business decision by the New York Yankees. The budget for player salaries can have a huge impact on the organization. The organization will suffer revenue
References: CBS Sports. (2008). MLB Salaries. Retrieved March 31, 2008 from http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/salaries CNN Money. (2008). Ticket prices going, going…up. Retrieved March 31, 2008 from http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/03/news/baseball_tickets/index.htm ESPN. (2008). MLB Attendance Report – 2005. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/attendance?sort=home_avg&year=2005&seasonType=2 Lane, D. (2003). Levels of Measurement. Retrieved from the Connexions Web site: http://cnx.org/content/m10809/2.4/ MacDonald, D.N., Reynolds, M.O. (1994). Are Baseball Players Paid their Marginal Products? Managerial and Decision Economics (1986-1998), 15(5), 443 2008, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 408917891). Scully, G.W. (2004). Player Salary Share and the Distribution of Player Earnings. Managerial and Decision Economics, 25(2), 77+ Global database. (Document ID: 572998961). Sherony, K., Davison, A. (2007). Smartball: Are Low-Revenue Teams Redefining the Market for Baseball Talent? Nine, 16(1), 21-36, 66-67 Library database. (Document ID: 1339525881). University of Phoenix. (2004). Data Sets. Retrieved March 30, 2008, from University of Phoenix, Week 2, rEsource Yilmaz, M. R., Chatterjee, S. (2003). Salaries, performance, and owner 's goals in major league baseball: A view through data Retrieved April 5, 2008, from ABI/INFORM Global database. Appendix A: Team Salary Descriptive Statistical Data