Mark Cuban reveals why he won’t buy Pittsburgh Pirates

Nov 27, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban smiles for the camera before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the New Orleans Pelicans at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Mark Cuban would love to own his hometown Pittsburgh Pirates, and fans in Pittsburgh would probably love to have Cuban own the team. But the 66-year-old part-owner of the Dallas Mavericks recently reiterated why that won’t be happening.

The whole debate was reignited by a Pittsburgh fan who asked Cuban, via the social media site X, to buy the team. Someone responded and said that Cuban told them in 2006 that the current Pirates owners would never sell because of how profitable the team is.

I talked with Mark Cuban about buying the team back in 2006. He loves the Pirates but says the owners will NEVER sell due to their business model. They aren’t required to spend money so they never do & they make big profits every year through TV & everything else. Lost cause

— Jon Linder (@LinderShowMiami) August 29, 2024

The Pirates owner, Bob Nutting, keeps the team’s payroll low and collects revenue sharing money from MLB’s TV deals. That results in a profitable business.

Cuban argues that Nutting doesn’t mind being disliked because he’s making so much money while doing it.

If someone offered you a job, that paid 25m or more per year, to stand in Market Square and let the entire city of Pittsburgh yell at you, would you take that job ?

That job is owning the Pirates.

Why would they sell ? https://t.co/PI8se807lH

— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) August 29, 2024

Would you accept a $25 million job to stand in the middle of your city and get yelled at? That’s a nice analogy by Cuban to help explain the owner of the Pirates’ stance.