Lockout hurts Braves' chance to cash in on championship

CHICAGO (AP) — World Series champions for the first time in 26 years, the Atlanta Braves were all set to cash in.

With young stars like Ronald Acuña Jr., to go along with a swanky ballpark and surrounding entertainment district, they had everything in place.

Then a storm rolled in, and they had to pull a tarp over some of their party plans.

Perhaps no team was hurt more than Atlanta when Major League Baseball locked out its players on Dec. 2. The move put the start of the 2022 season in jeopardy and scrubbed Acuña and company from the Braves' business plans — for now.

The afterglow of a championship, especially the end of a drought like the one Atlanta experienced, is traditionally quite lucrative for teams, going beyond merchandise and ticket sales to strengthening relationships with partners and finalizing new sponsorship deals. But baseball's labor strife increases the difficulty for the Braves when it comes to making the most of the opportunity.

“A lot of it is kind of using that moment to grow your fan base and just elevate the way people think about your organization and perceive it,” said Brian Gainor, the vice president of innovation for 4FRONT, a sports marketing firm.

Messages were left by the AP seeking comment from Atlanta. There was no response, but the franchise has been keeping some heady company since the final out of its fourth World Series title.

The Braves hosted Chelsea FC from soccer's Premier League in a meeting of champions in early December. Mascots from each club palled around on the field at Truist Park and posed for pictures with The Commissioner's Trophy and Chelsea's 2021 Champions League trophy.

“Wouldn't have been a trip to Atlanta without visiting the champs,” Chelsea FC tweeted from its U.S. account.

It was a savvy business connection...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Lockout-hurts-Braves-chance-to-cash-in-on-16738563.php