Major League Baseball’s collective bargaining agreement expires at the end of the year, and it looks like it is heading towards a standoff between owners and players. The major pressure point being a growing majority of owners wanting a salary cap implemented, a change the Players Association has always rejected. The Los Angeles Dodgers’ approach to capitalize on the current contract structure has angered fellow owners to the point that they plan to aggressively pursue drastic changes.
One side blames the back-to-back champs for abusing the freedoms of MLB contracts, while the other blames cheap ownership for the lack of competitive balance. Those arguments can go around in circles all they want, but it’s both parties that are to blame. All 30 owners have made this mess to varying degrees, and now they will have to live with the consequences. It’s a shame that the league has put in the effort to regain its popularity only to shoot itself in the foot.
Power and Greed
Greed seems to be synonymous with the Dodgers front office and ownership. They have created a roster full of all-stars that is arguably the most talented of all-time, and have become the new villains of the sport. While LA fans argue that the hate is just because they win, it’s because of their unethical approach. Deferred contracts are technically legal, but they have abused that loophole.
Of the 31 contracts with deferred money currently in the league, ten are active Dodgers players totaling just under $1.1 billion. The Mets are the only other team with more than two, and the total money doesn’t even reach $90 million. The Dodgers aren’t smarter than everyone else; they’ve abused technicalities to the point of enraging fans and fellow owners.
The Tarik Skubal trade seems to have been the last straw for everyone outside of Elysian Park. Because of their willingness to “spend” big money, the reigning back-to-back Cy Young winner said that LA was his preferred destination once he hit free agency. Normally, a player’s wishes would not be criticized, but this instance is different.
With Detroit looking to trade Skubal, that report put the Tigers in an impossible spot: refuse all offers that weren’t fair value or let him walk for nothing. No other team was going to give a package large enough for a four-month rental, so the Tigers sold for forty cents on the dollar.
Fake Small-Market Disadvantages
The rest of the league doesn’t escape without any blame either. The small-market teams have argued forever that they cannot compete with the larger markets. While there is some truth to that, those owners have been just as greedy. They are more interested in turning a profit year-to-year than putting a winning product on the field. When it comes time to pay star players, they either trade or let them walk and then hide behind the “we don’t have that kind of money” defense.
Bob Nutting and the Pirates have been using this for years. They signed first baseman Ryan O’Hearn this past offseason to a two-year, $29 million contract. It is the largest deal Pittsburgh has ever given out to a free agent hitter, and the first multi-year deal since 2016. Nutting is not the only culprit of this. Tampa Bay, the Athletics, and many others have played this game because dollars are more important than trophies.
These owners have been supporting and manufacturing the lack of competitive balance in the league for years. They live in the constant cycle of drafting and developing players, dangling them in front of the big markets as trade chips, collecting a handful of prospects, and starting that process all over again.
The Bottom Line On Major League Baseball Labor Talks
MLB fans should be prepared for no baseball next season at the very least. The owners will refuse any agreement that doesn’t include a salary cap, and the players’ association will not accept one. The league has no one to blame but itself. It’s allowed a beast to grow within, and the rest of the league has fed it.
Baltimore Orioles owner David Rubenstein said a year ago, “I don’t have a financial limit,” and then traded the face of his rebuild away at the deadline. The Athletics had a movie made about their value-driven approach but have been irrelevant for over a decade. The same clubs that have shown disdain towards the big markets have funded their growth.
The Dodgers have become the apex predator in this. They have the money but made it easier on themselves with their pervasive use of loopholes. They have the location but made themselves even more appealing. The Yankees used to be the face of ruining the league, but, to their credit, they played by the rules. If they wanted to pay someone for five years of service, they paid them during that time. They weren’t kicking $100 million down the road.
The MLB has done so much to bring back a strong fanbase over the last few years. It seemed like it was clearly establishing itself in the number two spot behind the NFL and surpassing the NBA. The mismanagement of operations has put it in a position to destroy everything it’s built in that time. The owners can point fingers at each other all they want, but every one of them has a hand in creating this mess.
