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Play Ball: Assessing the Economic Impact of Small Market Baseball teams chronicles the path that one U.S. city (Lansing, MI) took to acquire a minor league baseball franchise (Lansing Lugnuts). This work examines the need for economic growth in the post-industrial City of Lansing, the attempt to draw a minor league baseball team to the city, and overall economic benefit. The municipal cost of hosting Major League baseball teams in large cities like New York and Detroit is also discussed. The study looks at State Equalized Value (SEV) of property taxes in the stadium district, and conducts a longitudinal analysis to measure the increase in property values. The study also includes interviews with business owners in the area surrounding the stadium and asks those owners to what degree the baseball franchise increases their businesses. This is an important read for potential minor league baseball franchisees, city officials looking to grow their economy, and for researchers looking to assess the economic benefit of sports franchises on a regional economy.

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Jeff Keesler is a PhD student at Michigan State University in Planning, Design, and Construction, where his focus area of study is regional economic development. His main research focus is on measuring the regional economic impacts of industries on local economies and testing existing and new methodologies for measuring economic growth.

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