Poll: Salary Cap in MLB

[BleedRed89]

Enjoy the 2026 season MLB fans. Because we're almost certainly headed towards a massive labor dispute in the off season as owners look to once again have a salary cap put in place.

I was always of the "meh" variety - but the Dodgers creativity in contract structuring is causing there to be a lot of pissed off folks around the MLB world.

What say you?

""They (MLB owners) are ready to burn the f---ing house down," one high-ranking team official said."

What Kyle Tucker's Dodgers contract means for MLB labor peace

MLB fans are angry -- and players and owners are, too. What did this offseason mean for baseball's coming labor strife?

www.espn.com

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

People cry about the Dodgers, but nobody cries about the Mets who have outspent the Dodgers. I dive in the deep end and swim laps in their tears. Freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke, and combat side stroke. F em. People hate you when you're on top. I love and embrace the Darth Vader role. They hate us cuz they anus.

 

[BleedRed89]

People cry about the Dodgers, but nobody cries about the Mets who have outspent the Dodgers. I dive in the deep end and swim laps in their tears. Freestyle, backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke, and combat side stroke. F em. People hate you when you're on top. I love and embrace the Darth Vader role. They hate us cuz they anus.

I love an opportunity to dog on the Mets when given. But the only reason the Dodgers arent #1 in spending is the Dodgers deferring money.

If that deferred money were actually on the books, the Dodgers payroll in 2025 would have been 543 million. Almost 200 million more than the 2nd place Mets...for a single year.

The Dodgers now have over a billion dollars in deferred money on their books.

Idk man. That seems pretty busted to me.

 

[K Rod]

The Dodgers get 300 million per year from their cable TV contract alone. Plus they are #1 in attendance. Income from merch is massive. Each contract that has a salary deferral has money put in escrow which grows in value every year until the payouts begin. The Dodgers ownership group know exactly what they are doing. Its the other club owners who pocket their payroll tax payment ( welfare ) and refuse to invest in free agents.

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

I love an opportunity to dog on the Mets when given. But the only reason the Dodgers arent #1 in spending is the Dodgers deferring money.

If that deferred money were actually on the books, the Dodgers payroll in 2025 would have been 543 million. Almost 200 million more than the 2nd place Mets...for a single year.

The Dodgers now have over a billion dollars in deferred money on their books.

Idk man. That seems pretty busted to me.

Respectfully, idgaffffff. The Dodgers haven't done anything illegal (unlike the Astros, which the MLB refused to punish and is a big catalyst in the Dodgers upping their spending to be as Thanos calls it..."inevitable"). The Dodgers have been a top payroll for almost a decade and have 3 World Series to show for it. Spending money doesn't directly translate into championships, or else the Mets and Yankees would be champs more frequently. Blue Jays could have beaten the big spenders, but it isn't the Dodgers' fault the Blue Jays choked. Maybe it is.

All a salary cap will do is fill the owners' pockets even further, especially if/when the MLB gets a better media rights deal in place.

 

[BleedRed89]

The Dodgers get 300 million per year from their cable TV contract alone. Plus they are #1 in attendance. Income from merch is massive. Each contract that has a salary deferral has money put in escrow which grows in value every year until the payouts begin. The Dodgers ownership group know exactly what they are doing. Its the other club owners who pocket their payroll tax payment ( welfare ) and refuse to invest in free agents.

Its an incredibly risky gamble. If the dollar stagnates or the sport takes a dip in popularity and future bargaining agreements arent as lucrative as their front office predicts, they'll be bent over a barrel.

 

[mgbreeze]

The NFL is awesome because of the parity and competition. Only the truly incompetent like Woody Johnson can't figure it out. I'd love to see more parity in baseball, especially if any cap also is paired with a floor that forces the Bob Nuttings of the world to spend more money.

 

[o_runningback43]

The NFL is awesome because of the parity and competition. Only the truly incompetent like Woody Johnson can't figure it out. I'd love to see more parity in baseball, especially if any cap also is paired with a floor that forces the Bob Nuttings of the world to spend more money.

A salary cap in MLB is needed. MLB also needs a floor when it comes to salaries. There are teams out there that make a lot of money and constantly field horrible teams with very low payrolls.

 

[cubsker15]

There are teams in the NFL and NBA who constantly field horrible teams as well.

 

[cubsker15]

21 of 30 MLB teams have made the world series this century.
21 of 32 NFL teams have made the super bowl this century.
17 of 30 NBA teams have made the finals this century.

 

[bug]

Respectfully, idgaffffff. The Dodgers haven't done anything illegal (unlike the Astros, which the MLB refused to punish and is a big catalyst in the Dodgers upping their spending to be as Thanos calls it..."inevitable"). The Dodgers have been a top payroll for almost a decade and have 3 World Series to show for it. Spending money doesn't directly translate into championships, or else the Mets and Yankees would be champs more frequently. Blue Jays could have beaten the big spenders, but it isn't the Dodgers' fault the Blue Jays choked. Maybe it is.

All a salary cap will do is fill the owners' pockets even further, especially if/when the MLB gets a better media rights deal in place.

As far as wealth among team ownership the Blue Jays are 2nd to the Mets. The Yankees owners don't even rank in the top 12. Now revenue is another matter. Yankees are 2nd there. I think what is needed is a salary floor for MLB as too many owners enjoy getting the Luxury tax from the spenders and don't put it into salaries to improve their teams.
I fear we will have no baseball in 27.

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

As far as wealth among team ownership the Blue Jays are 2nd to the Mets. The Yankees owners don't even rank in the top 12. Now revenue is another matter. Yankees are 2nd there. I think what is needed is a salary floor for MLB as too many owners enjoy getting the Luxury tax from the spenders and don't put it into salaries to improve their teams.
I fear we will have no baseball in 27.

I’m all for a salary floor and a salary cap. I just think people using the Dodgers as the excuse for their complaints are ridiculous. The Dodgers are one of the best franchises in the league in so many different facets. It’s one of the reasons players have taken less money to be in LA (with stupid taxes) than somewhere else. A salary cap won’t change that. In fact, it’ll make the Dodgers ownership richer and I thought that was the complaint about all the other leagues. Cheap owners will be cheap owners no matter parameters are in place. I get the argument about smaller market teams, but if ownerships gave their cities a team worth coming out for the people will show. “Build it and they will come”. There’s a reason attendance for the Royals has plummeted since a couple years after their World Series title. There’s a reason the Oakland A’s attendance has plummeted since their last set of playoff runs. There’s Miami Marlins get rid of their best players time and time again or refuse to resign them to their worth, why would their fans show up? That city and area is dominated by Cubans, Puerto Ricans, and Dominicans. They would show up in droves to support that franchise if the franchise actually cared about putting a good product on the field. Cheap owners will always be the #1 problem in every sport. A salary floor is an absolute must and it cannot be a low floor.

 

[BleedRed89]

21 of 30 MLB teams have made the world series this century.
21 of 32 NFL teams have made the super bowl this century.
17 of 30 NBA teams have made the finals this century.

Your numbers are technically low. Add +1 to each of them.

And I agree - there is still parity in baseball. The issue with the current system IMO is it creates two types of owners. Those like the Dodgers that will spend their way to competition. And those like the Athletics that will simply take their paychecks and do nothing to try and make the team genuine contenders on a yearly basis. Not to mention this system now has teams just completely shift to rebuild modes that can last 3 to 5 years. Being a fan of a franchise in that mode is not fun.

Something needs to be done to bring them to the middle.

FWIW - I respect the Dodgers way of doing it a hell of a lot more than the Athletics.

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

Your numbers are technically low. Add +1 to each of them.

And I agree - there is still parity in baseball. The issue with the current system IMO is it creates two types of owners. Those like the Dodgers that will spend their way to competition. And those like the Athletics that will simply take their paychecks and do nothing to try and make the team genuine contenders on a yearly basis. Not to mention this system now has teams just completely shift to rebuild modes that can last 3 to 5 years. Being a fan of a franchise in that mode is not fun.

Something needs to be done to bring them to the middle.

FWIW - I respect the Dodgers way of doing it a hell of a lot more than the Athletics.

That’s a similar gripe I have with the other leagues that intentionally tank to get the #1 pick. Shutting their players down halfway through the year for phony injuries and mysterious ailments, playing all their practice squad level guys, it’s bush league and those GM’s, owners, coaches should be banned for it.

 

[cubsker15]

NBA just fined two teams for tanking.

 

[BleedRed89]

That’s a similar gripe I have with the other leagues that intentionally tank to get the #1 pick. Shutting their players down halfway through the year for phony injuries and mysterious ailments, playing all their practice squad level guys, it’s bush league and those GM’s, owners, coaches should be banned for it.

Honestly the real issue with American sports but it will NEVER change...is our leagues are franchises.

I get it. At this point they've invested so much, the argument they created this system and thus deserve to be there is a valid one.

But franchising is not the best model to breed competition. If that were any of these leagues actual objectives, they'd use the European model of promotions and relegations. It is objectively better for the parity of the sport.

It is also objectively worse for the valuation of the teams. And so, it will never happen in America. That ship has sailed unfortunately...

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

NBA just fined two teams for tanking.

After how many years of it happening ?

 

[cubsker15]

After how many years of it happening ?

Many. Thought it was pretty obvious the raiders tanked to get the #1 pick. Astros tanked multiple years to get a bunch of top picks before they got good ten years ago.

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

Many. Thought it was pretty obvious the raiders tanked to get the #1 pick. Astros tanked multiple years to get a bunch of top picks before they got good ten years ago.

Exactly. It took many years for the NBA to finally do something about it. And as an apathetic Raiders fan, it was absolute bogus they tanked. I long for the day Mark Davis is no longer the owner. Tanking is regulated with the loosest restrictions and punished with the most minuscule consequences.

 

[BleedRed89]

Exactly. It took many years for the NBA to finally do something about it. And as an apathetic Raiders fan, it was absolute bogus they tanked. I long for the day Mark Davis is no longer the owner. Tanking is regulated with the loosest restrictions and punished with the most minuscule consequences.

Saw this today and thought of this thread...

Cuban: NBA should 'embrace tanking' to improve fan experience

Mark Cuban, the former majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, says the fan experience is chief among the reasons the NBA should "embrace tanking," and that affordability is key in the formula.

www.espn.com

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

Saw this today and thought of this thread...

Cuban: NBA should 'embrace tanking' to improve fan experience

Mark Cuban, the former majority owner of the Dallas Mavericks, says the fan experience is chief among the reasons the NBA should "embrace tanking," and that affordability is key in the formula.

www.espn.com

Wow! Disagree with Cuban. Yeah I may not remember the score but I remember whether or not they lost. What kind of experience can you provide the fan when you’re intentionally trying to lose? I’m not going to the arena to play in the arcade or see the halftime show. I am there to watch competitive basketball (or other sport) and root for my team. If you aren’t going to field a competitive team and try to win, I’m not wasting my money. I can buy jerseys and apparel nearly anywhere for much cheaper than I can at the arena. If the costs of tickets and merch are such a priority for him, lower the costs. Stop paying players $60+ mil a year to dribble a ball and put it through a hoop. Can’t believe he’s trying to defend discarding the integrity of the game all in favor of capitalism. And the fact he pawns that excuse off in the name of the fans. Well, I actually can.

 

[Cjlemke21]

What is love to see more than anything here is a salary floor and a cap, or no cap but no more deferred contracts… it’s bad for the game and not just for MLB but for all sports to have all the stars playing for just a few teams… parity in sports goes a long ways…

I can’t hate on the Dodgers for using the rules to their advantage, but they did find the loop hole and for whatever reason other teams don’t want to use it… I was also reading that the dodgers also toss in some heavy signing bonuses as well, which other teams either can’t do or are not willing to do.
If deferred salaries are going to still be allowed then there does need to be a cap and that deferred money needs to either still count against the cap down the road when they’re no longer playing, or they need to figure out a way to make that money count against the cap now…

id also say any current contracts should be exempt from that rule… you set a cap and you’re either at it or under it before the deadline