St. Louis Cardinals slash payroll by more than $9 million
03/18/2009
Taking into account base salaries, disabled players and termination pay, the Cardinals have obligated about $93.2 million to the projected 25-man roster for the April 6 season opener against Pittsburgh.
The number drops from 2008's $101.792 million season-opening figure that committed more than $26 million to five players who made a combined seven appearances.
Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. confirmed "some slippage" in the team's attendance and sponsorship projections stemming from the nation's financial crisis that exploded shortly after last season.
"If you add all that together, it's a challenging economic environment," DeWitt said. "It's not unique to the Cardinals. Other clubs are feeling the same thing. We're tightening our belts."
With 2.7 million tickets already sold, the club no longer fears such a doomsday possibility.
"There are a lot of factors," said DeWitt, who oversaw a payroll that topped $110 million at last season's end. "Right now we're projecting (a drop to) 3 million attendance. Also, sponsorship categories like automotive and financial are not as strong as they were before. We're seeing some slippage."
03/18/2009 - St. Louis Cardinals slash payroll by more than $9 million - STLtoday.com
Not a big surprise.. when your big signings were Trever Miller and just recently Dennys Reyes of course it was gonna go down.. that said a lot of teams seem like they didnt do much this off-season so whatever.. I'm OK with it