Introducing FanGraphs MVP
Whenever I write a State of FanGraphs post, I see some version of this comment: “I’m already a FanGraphs Member, but I’d like to give FanGraphs more money. How can I do that?”
We deeply appreciate that some of you want to offer us more support than our standard annual Membership, and now there’s a way, with the FanGraphs MVP Membership. The price is $500 a year and you get the following:
- All the usual FanGraphs Membership benefits
- A gift exclusive to FanGraphs MVP Members
- An annual call for MVPs with me and other FanGraphs leadership on the state and direction of the site
- An optional tag on your comments indicating that you’re an MVP Member
Assuming that you’re already a site Member, this Membership will replace your current Membership, with your prorated remaining time credited to the initial $500 price. This way, if your $80 Membership just renewed, you don’t have to pay $580 to become an MVP Member.
Philosophically, we’re positioning FanGraphs MVP Membership as a way to further support our work, and receive some special recognition in the process. FanGraphs will become better with your additional support, but your individual FanGraphs experience won’t be better than any other Member’s. We feel this is an important distinction to make, and also an important distinction to be up-front about.
This year’s exclusive gift is a 14-ounce FanGraphs-branded Yeti mug with a ceramic interior:
When I showed the prototype to folks at a recent FanGraphs staff gathering, it was deemed “quite nice.” It will be laser etched with the FanGraphs logo, the year you became an MVP Member, and your MVP Member number, which is assigned in the order you sign up for an MVP Membership. In future years, we may have different gifts. We’ll think more about that this offseason, solicit feedback from MVP Members, and make an announcement as to what’s next before the first anniversary of FanGraphs MVP Membership.
Regardless, we won’t sell these FanGraphs Yeti mugs outside of MVP Membership. They are exclusive to FanGraphs MVP Members.
That said, we know that many existing Members who want to further support the site would prefer to buy more FanGraphs-branded merchandise to do so. We’re actively working on some new merch that isn’t tied to FanGraphs MVP Membership, as well as restocking some of our existing items, and should have more information soon!
If you have the means and love FanGraphs, an MVP Membership is a great way to support the site you’ve come to rely on while getting a nice mug you can brag about. And whether it’s as an annual or monthly Member or an MVP, we’re extremely grateful for all of our Members. You are the reason we’re able to continue to grow and improve the unique combination of data and editorial content that is FanGraphs.
David Appelman is the creator of FanGraphs.
(Clapping hands emojis)
This is a great idea. I’ve been pretty lucky in life. Not so lucky that $500 a year is just something I don’t really care about. However, if Fangraphs ever went away or the quality suffered, I’d kick myself for not chipping in money, that while again not nothing to me, I can definitely afford to part with.
I also really like the aspect of not changing the site for members. I think anyone doing this just wants to support the site. I think this strikes a good balance.
Did you get MVP No. 1?
Haha, I guess I just missed #1.
Thanks so much for your support, we really appreciate it!
You can check your Membership # under My Account -> Dashboard : https://plus.fangraphs.com/my-account/
Bravo sir!
I think some readers would be more apt to pay for something like this if we actually knew what the financial state of Fangraphs was/is. In the article “The State of Fangraphs 2026” we were told that costs were up, certain revenues were down, etc, but no hard numbers were actually given to the members and readers.
What were the total revenues of Fangraphs in 2025? What were the total expenses?
Not sure why this was getting downvoted. Of course, Fangraphs has no obligation to share, but there could be a lot of upside in doing so!
Yep.
If you came out and said ‘Fangraphs in in big trouble”, I would run to my credit card.
Not going to lie: This seems like desperation. which sucks.
I agree that honesty is the best policy here. $500 is A LOT. Even compared to other news site. If Fangraphs is in trouble, I’ll run to my credit card, but if it is somewhat stable, I’ll need to wait.
I personally think the site needs to lock a lot of the fantasy stuff behind the paywall. It drives A LOT of traffic and A LOT of it is gambling related,
Yes, $500 is a lot, but please keep in mind that this is not the new price of FanGraphs. It comes with zero site features, which is how it’s designed.
It’s not meant to price people out of FanGraphs Membership.
As my most recent State of FanGraphs outlined, we face a number of headwinds, some of which affect all of digital media, some of which are specific to baseball.
We are not in the dire straights we were in 2020, but we’re mindful of the difficulties a changing media landscape and the impending lockout will bring. This is a way for folks who have the means and have expressed a desire to provide greater financial support to the site to do so as we navigate those challenges.
Thoughts about selling sponsorships on specific player pages? One-time buy-in cost, determined relative to click rate on player page? I’m sure Ruth, Bonds, Trout get more clicks than say, …. Hosken Powell.
Second this – I miss being able to sponsor player pages on Baseball Reference, would like to see it back there and also here!
Yep, I agree. If there’s any risk of them not being able to continue, I will buy MVP because this is my favorite site on the internet, but unless it’s needed, $500 is a lot
Don’t worry, they’ve got Banknotes Harper in the back room, doing deals, turning their millions into billions.
FanGraphs trucker caps please! I will buy them! (Not all of them, but multiple)
I’d buy a polo/golf shirt in a minute.
Also, in addition to the FG logo, it’d be cool if the sleeve had “In Play, Run(s)” on it.
I’d think hard about $200 but $500 is a lot for not much more value. The elite FG staff all left for front office positions (Cistulli, Cameron, Sullivan). A call with who is left and a yeti mug not worth it IMHO.
ok
what a weird $300 hill to stick your “i know what writers are elite and what writers aren’t” flag on.
I’d argue those folks *became* elite in part because of working at Fangraphs!
The reason it doesn’t meet your stringent ROI requirements is because it’s not intended to do that. It’s a way to give the site more support by those with the means to do so, and the perks are a thank you. A lot of charities do similar things in fundraisers.
woot
The thing I’m most upset about is I got MVP #6, rather than lucky #5. Any chance a huge Stan Musial fan wants to trade back?
Happy to support a site I use all the time and I feel is getting better when everything else feels like it’s service is getting worse.
#5 was retired for Jayden Daniels
I hope aspiring MLB GMs will be putting their membership/MVP status on their resumes.
$80/12 = $6.67 per month
$500/12 = $41.67 per month
I pay about $35 per month for another notable publication, though I don’t necessarily read that one every day. I do read this one every day during baseball season and return to it often enough that, though the cost looks prohibitive, it seems worth the support given how often I read articles and access RosterResource on this site. It’s something for me to think about!
I noticed the difference between regular membership and MVP membership is 420, which as a Mets fan I could really use after this horrendous season!
Amazing! Thank you so much for finding ways for us to contribute to a site that brings so much joy. A little extra $$ annually is a small price to pay to ensure this community stays afloat.
I request a boardgame night hosted by Ben Clemens!
I’m in. Given how often I seek information from Fangraphs, I consider it to be one of my professional organizations. Hence, this is simply the annual membership fee. (And far less than some other organizations that I’m expected to join, but don’t provide me with nearly the same amount of value.) Even if I don’t consider it a professional organization, I am happy to contribute. At $42 per month, I can view it as one fewer restaurant meal per month.
That said, if I could find at least seven people who would benefit from a full membership to Fangraphs, I would rather pay for their membership than have an MVP attached to my name.
I just noticed that one does not need to show the MVP badge. I assume you would prefer that we show the badge to hype your campaign.
Now for the complaint. Normally, I would be happy to accept the insulated mug. It looks useful. And having the MVP on it looks particularly cool. However, the word YETI on it is so distracting that I don’t see myself using it to promote Fangraphs. Instead of discussing the wonderfulness of Fangraphs, I’m sure people who see it will ask me about YETI. (Sad face emoji.)
My first was reaction was ‘damn, that’s a lot of bank.”
LaBellaVita talked me into it. I read this site more than I read the Economist and the NYT, so the value seemed right compared to other subs I have. Hopefully the order processes in time so that I don’t look like a liar when there’s no MVP logo on this post.
If I wasn’t having to spend so much time on job search websites I’d likely dive in. Separately, I have that size Yeti mug & am a big fan… it’s broader than most, so is not easily tipped over by cats!
Something for people to note – this is *not* David saying ‘hey everyone, you should now pay FanGraphs $500.’
This is David saying ‘hey everyone, some of you have said you WANT to help fund FanGraphs above and beyond the price of a regular membership. Well here’s how you can do that, if you want!’
This is not a new baseline expectation for folks who support the site.
I see MVP next to your response, I thumbs up.
Whoever suggested in chat a few months ago that there should be a high-end tier that gets you an autographed photo of one of my cats, if you do get the MVP subscription, let me know and I’ll do that.
Honestly I wasn’t really thinking of getting the MVP membership until I saw this but now it’s pretty hard to turn down
Stonecutter rules? Like if I’m #25 do I have to pick up #17’s dry cleaning?
I’m going to say yes.
Remember, you can outsource it to #31.
And now the final ordeal: the paddling of the swollen ass…with paddles!
Keep up the good work.
Perhaps there could be a smaller version. Like a ROY for $250. Throw in a T-shirt instead of the mug and a postcard instead of the call. Or a monthly email to ROYs.
While I don’t actually *know* specifically, I would *imagine* that we’ll tinker with the offerings we have in the long term. Some of it is the right stuff, some of it is figuring out what you guys are interested in, and so on.
Thoughts about selling sponsorships on specific player pages? One-time buy-in cost, determined relative to click rate on player page? I’m sure Ruth, Bonds, Trout get more clicks than say, …. Hosken Powell.