Oct. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Major League Baseball's mascots, the big-headed critters that gyrate atop dugouts, include a moose, horse, marlin, parrot and seal.

Every one of them also qualifies as a cash cow.

This year's World Series participants, the Houston Astros and Chicago White Sox, are among the big-league teams that recently began charging as much as $500 an hour for mascot appearances at birthday parties, weddings and functions for companies including Coca-Cola Co., the world's largest soft-drink maker, and SABMiller Plc's Miller Brewing Co.

The Astros seized the opportunity to make money this season with Junction Jack, a buck-toothed, tall-eared rabbit who dresses in a train engineer's getup. Jack does private functions for $150 an hour.

``Of course, we like to profit on it,'' says Rita Suchma, the team's community-development manager.

Demand for Junction Jack or Southpaw, the lime-colored creature spawned by the White Sox, is certain to soar during the off-season, depending on which team wins the World Series.

Take it from the Boston Red Sox, last year's champs, and from Wally, the green-furred, red-nosed, smiling character created as an homage to Fenway Park's 37-foot (11.3-meter) wall in left field known as ``the green monster.''

At first, even the most fervent Boston backers weren't enthralled with Wally, who was booed at his 1997 debut. The mascot's popularity grew, though, allowing the Red Sox to begin charging a $500-an-hour appearance fee before last season. The Sox then won their first World Series championship since 1918, catapulting demand for Wally.

``It's been totally out of control in terms of the number of appearances,'' says Chris Bergstrom, one of three performers hired by the Red Sox to become Wally. ``If you rent a regular party clown, it's going to be the same price. For the same money you can get THE mascot of the Red Sox.''

10 a Day

Wally is so hot that just one isn't sufficient. The Red Sox have two costumes making a combined 10 appearances a day on busy weekends. The revenue goes to the team, which pays the actors a fee that Bergstrom won't disclose.

Of the 30 major league clubs, only the Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers don't have mascots.

The cartoon-like characters are the latest revenue generators in a sport where there's a correlation between how much a team spends on players and how many games it wins. This season, all eight of the playoff teams were in the upper echelon of leaguewide payrolls. That's not the case in the National Football League, where there's a strict ceiling on player salaries.

Major League Baseball revenue surged 35 percent to $4.6 billion in the past three years, while player salaries rose just 8.3 percent to $2.35 billion. Player salaries accounted for half of revenue as recently as 2002.

Attendance Gains

The popularity of mascots mirrored the growth in baseball game attendance, which ballooned 10.2 percent to 74.9 million this season over 2002. The Yankees, whose $200 million-plus payroll is the fattest in the majors, became the third team in history to draw more than 4 million fans this season.

The mascot folks are swamped in Milwaukee, where the moustachioed Bernie Brewer pockets $250 an hour. Bernie's price tag hasn't dampened demand for the mascot who's famous for sliding from his perch into a giant beer stein following Brewer home runs and victories, says Aleta Mercer, the team's senior director of broadcasting and entertainment.

Personal Scheduler

``It became an overwhelming task just to return the calls of people who were interested in scheduling an appearance,'' says Mercer, who hired an assistant to look after what she calls Bernie's social calendar. Bernie, Mercer wants fans to know, doesn't moonlight on game days.

Fredbird, the Cardinals' mascot, is always available in St. Louis, provided fans submit an appearance application no less than four weeks in advance. The big red bird gets $250 an hour or $350 for two hours. The White Sox didn't have a mascot until 2004, when they began charging a fee that the team wouldn't disclose for Southpaw, who features bushy yellow eyebrows and spiked green hair.

Florida's mascot, Billy the Marlin, makes some 450 appearances a year, says Gary Levy, the team's director of in- game entertainment. The Marlins charge $350 an hour for the mascot with the big teal head.

Keep the Change

No one benefited more from Florida's success than John Routh, 46, who donned the Billy the Marlin costume when the team won its first World Series in 1997 and worked through the 2002 season. Back then, the team allowed Routh to keep all of his off- field income.

``After we won in '97, I must've done 120 appearances by Christmas,'' Routh says, declining to specify his earnings. ``When you win a title, people want a piece of the championship no matter what.''

The Marlins won the World Series again in 2003, though Routh's replacements weren't as fortunate. Nowadays, the Marlins split appearance money with the mascot. The team's portion, which amounts to what Levy described as ``a decent amount,'' goes to the team's charitable foundation.

A number of baseball teams, including the Philadelphia Phillies, use their mascots to enhance community relations efforts.

Non-Profit Phanatic

The Phillie Phanatic, a green-toned creature with blue eyebrows and a bugle-like snout, has been a staple of Philadelphia baseball since 1978. It rides an all-terrain vehicle before games, mocks visiting players and dumps popcorn on the heads of fans.

The Phanatic is primarily played by Tom Burgoyne, who says he and his two assistants -- each with a personal costume --make a combined 500 appearances a year. The team charges $500 an hour for private functions and a reduced rate for appearances at charity or community events, Burgoyne says.

``Our philosophy with the Phanatic is never to directly turn a profit,'' he says. ``It's more of a good-will thing.''

The Phanatic was among the three inductees into the inaugural class of the Mascot Hall of Fame at an Aug. 16 ceremony in Philadelphia. Also enshrined were the Famous Chicken, which used to appear at San Diego Padres' games, and the Gorilla, which represents the National Basketball Association's Phoenix Suns.

Companies like Milwaukee-based Miller Brewing, which pays $2.1 million a year to have its name on the Brewers' stadium, uses Bernie Brewer to augment its community relations program, says spokesman Peter Marino. Bernie was on hand Aug. 20 when the company celebrated its 115th anniversary with a concert at Miller Park. The company gave away 35,000 tickets for a concert by the rock band Bon Jovi, Marino says.

Youppi! Crosses Over

When the Montreal Expos relocated to Washington before this season, they left mascot Youppi! behind. The orange-furred creature was adopted by the National Hockey League's Canadiens, becoming the first mascot in pro sports to move from one league to another.

In the U.S. capital, Youppi! was replaced by Screech, a brown-and-white bald eagle with an oversized head. Screech, who charges $400 an hour for appearances, is scheduled to attend this year's White House Christmas tree lighting.

``In private bookings, he is a revenue generator,'' says Josh Golden, Washington's manager of entertainment and events.

Golden's brother, Matt, occasionally occupies the mascot costume for New York's National League team. Team rules prohibit Mr. Met, whose head is a giant baseball, from speaking with the media.

Boston's Wally the Green Monster, on the other hand, after going from pariah to party animal in such a short period of time, is more than happy to sing his own praises.

``It took a few years for it to catch on,'' Bergstrom, a.k.a. Wally, says. ``But boy do the fans love it now.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Scott Soshnick in New York at ssoshnick@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 24, 2005 06:03 EDT