After Yordan Alvarez’s 6th-inning, 3-run homer helped secure a 4-2 series win, the Houston Astros are World Series champions.

Astros owner Jim Crane made his fortune in the logistics industry — his Crane Worldwide brings in $1.6 billion in gross annual revenue — and now his team has become one of the most efficient spenders in baseball.

After a doldrums from 2011 to 2013 in which the Astros failed to crack a .350 winning percentage, the team shrewdly drafted and developed talent, while finding international free agents who may have been unable to realize their full market value.

They also employed underhanded tactics, developing an illegal sign-stealing method which was in place for their previous championship season in 2017.

• Four of the team’s five leaders in innings pitched were international free agents — Christian Javier, José Urquidy, Framber Valdez, and Luis Garcia — who collected signing bonuses of $140,000 in total.
• Because players in their first three years of team control have no ability to negotiate their salaries, many of the Astros’ top players made under $1 million including Javier, Garcia, Álvarez, Jeremy Peña, and Kyle Tucker. 

The team’s $192.9 million 2022 payroll was ninth-highest in MLB.

Low Scoring Ratings

The World Series averaged 11.6 million viewers through its first five games, narrowly edging 2021’s 11.3 million through the same stretch.

Both figures are among the lowest in 50 years, and a far cry from 2016’s 23.4 million average viewers, which was the best figure since 2004.

The sliding viewership hasn’t stopped the league from bringing in cash: MLB expects its 2022 revenue to eclipse $11 billion this season, besting 2019’s $10.7 billion.

With the Astros win, Jim McIngvale, better known as “Mattress Mack,” won the biggest legal payout in sports wagering history. A $3 million bet with Caesars Sportsbook placed on May 13 paid out $30 million. In all, the gambler won $75 million on the Astros off of $10 million in bets.

Durant Wants In

Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant, a lifelong Commanders fan, told ESPN that he would like to be part of the next ownership group.

Durant is no stranger to team ownership: He owns stakes in the MLS’ Philadelphia Union, the NWSL’s NY/NJ Gotham FC, and a Major League Pickleball franchise.

The sale, which one NFL team executive told FOS could reach $7 billion, has already attracted at least five ownership groups.

Jeff Bezos, possibly in concert with Jay-Z, is expected to bid, as are entertainment mogul Byron Allen, New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers co-owner Josh Harris, and United Wholesale Mortgage CEO Mat Ishbia.

Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant, a lifelong Commanders fan, told ESPN that he would like to be part of the next ownership group.

Durant is no stranger to team ownership: He owns stakes in the MLS’ Philadelphia Union, the NWSL’s NY/NJ Gotham FC, and a Major League Pickleball franchise.

The sale, which one NFL team executive told FOS could reach $7 billion, has already attracted at least five ownership groups.

Jeff Bezos, possibly in concert with Jay-Z, is expected to bid, as are entertainment mogul Byron Allen, New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers co-owner Josh Harris, and United Wholesale Mortgage CEO Mat Ishbia.

Soccer’s governing body is urging fans to avoid politics as the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar nears on Nov. 20.

As fan groups boycott the event and teams stage protests, FIFA’s acknowledgement of Qatar’s alleged human rights abuses against the LGBT community and the country’s migrant workers have remained virtually nonexistent.

On Thursday, FIFA’s president Gianni Infantino and secretary general Fatma Samoura wrote a letter to the 32 nations competing to concentrate on the game itself.

“We know football does not live in a vacuum, and we are equally aware that there are many challenges and difficulties of a political nature all around the world,” the letter reads. “But please do not allow football to be dragged into every ideological or political battle that exists.”

• “One of the great strengths of the world is indeed its diversity, and if inclusion means anything, it means having respect for that diversity.” 
• “No one people or culture or nation is ‘better’ than any other.”

Qatar minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said the boycotts have “a lot of hypocrisy.” 

“The reality is that the world is looking forward to this celebration,” he said. “Over 97% of tickets have been sold.”

Calls to Action

Groups are giving organizers opportunities to acknowledge Qatar’s abuses.

Human rights groups called on FIFA to compensate $440 million to Qatar’s migrant workers.

One organizing committee proposed policy changes for security forces to exercise “less intervention and more mediation.” On Thursday, Qatar’s interior ministry said over 50,000 people were trained for security.

The Big 12 could bolster its membership by adding a blue-chip mid-major. 

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark has met with Gonzaga athletic director Chris Standiford to discuss the Zags joining the Power 5 conference, according to ESPN. 

The conference will be losing Texas and Oklahoma — two of its most profitable athletic programs — to the SEC in 2025. 

The Big 12 will combat the losses by adding Cincinnati, UCF, Houston, and BYU by 2024. 

• In September, Yormark said that the conference is “open for business.”
• He has also voiced his desire to expand westward.
• The Big East and Pac-12 have also expressed interest in adding Gonzaga, a perennial basketball powerhouse. 

In October, the Big 12 finalized a new six-year media rights deal with ESPN and FOX worth $2.3 billion. The deal, which starts in 2030, will pay Big 12 members about $31.7 million annually — up from the $28 million average on the current deal. 

Reality Check 

Bob Huggins, recently inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, thinks things could be much different for Gonzaga if it joins the Big-12. 

“I would think it would be a tremendous awakening for Gonzaga,” WVU’s coach said. “You don’t get to make your own schedule in the Big 12.” 

Big 12 power Kansas, for example, has made 16 Final Four appearances and won four national titles.

The Zags’ have won 21 WCC regular-season championships since the 2000-2001 season, but no national title after two trips to the Final Four in 2017 and 2021.

FuboTV saw both its subscriber count and losses grow as it works to carve out territory in North America’s sports landscape.

The sports-focused streamer — which bundles offerings from other networks to lure cord cutters — saw revenues grow 43% year-over-year to reach $224.8 million.

• However, the company’s net losses also grew 44%, hitting $152.7 million in the quarter.
• North America, responsible for 97.5% of Fubo’s revenues, saw its subscriber base grow 31% from a year ago to 1.2 million.
• The company’s average revenue per user ticked up 2% to $71.52, with gains in subscriber ARPU canceling out losses in advertising ARPU.

Through its collection of local and national broadcasts, FuboTV shows more than 50,000 sporting events each year. It will broadcast all 64 World Cup matches in the U.S. through a partnership with Fox and Telemundo, which respectively hold the English and Spanish-language rights.

Canceled Bet

After initially working to build a sports betting offering into the viewing experience, FuboTV canceled its sportsbook and closed its gaming division in October.

“We still believe the integration of gaming and live sports streaming is powerful. As a result, we are exploring ways to optimize our user base in the gaming space without investing our own funds,” wrote FuboTV co-founder and CEO David Gandler and executive chairman Edgar Bronfman Jr. in a letter to shareholders.