Sell radio, buy players

The Cincinnati Reds are far from returning to the "Big Red Machine" days of the 1970s, but they're going back to a radio-selling formula from that era that's produced a precision money-maker that could make Cincinnati buyers this offseason.

The Reds' decision to start selling their own advertising for their radio game broadcasts is contributing to an increase in revenue that could translate into a player payroll of around $80 million for the coming season, up from $74.1 million in 2008.
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Reds chief operating officer Phil Castellini said radio revenue is up 30 percent over the previous three years and total corporate sales revenue is up 140 percent over the same period.

"We put 100 percent of that into the team," Castellini said. "So you look at the payroll, which is published every year, and figure it out."

How many teams are taking this approach? It's no YES Network, but when you can spread around some extra cash, good things can happen.