The Los Angeles Dodgers leveraged into their wealth of financial resources again this past offseason, signing a handful of top free agents to multi-year contracts. Their aggressiveness came a year after signing Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to respective record-setting deals.
Coming off their World Series title, the Dodgers notably signed Blake Snell, Michael Conforto, Hyeseong Kim and Tanner Scott. They additionally retained Teoscar Hernández and Blake Treinen, and extended Tommy Edman on a five-year contract.
Since Ohtani signed, the Dodgers have added nearly $1.8 billion in salary commitments. Their financial strength towers over the rest of Major League Baseball, and many see it as an issue heading into the next collective bargaining agreement (CBA) negotiations.
Furthermore, it’s expected an MLB salary cap will be proposed to the union, and thus some team owners are anticipating another lockout once the CBA expires after the 2026 season, per Jeff Passan of ESPN:
Proposing a cap in next year’s CBA negotiations would be tantamount to a declaration of war by MLB — and already those owners are prepared for commissioner Rob Manfred to lock the players out Dec. 1, 2026.
The Dodgers are set to have a payroll north of $370 million for the 2025 season. That number in itself carries a lot of shock value for other MLB franchises, as 15 other teams have a projected 2025 payroll under $150 million.
Those worried about a potential labor dispute are reminded of the 1994 MLB season that was halted due to a work stoppage.
The Dodgers are a powerhouse and have perfected the business side of how to effectively run an MLB franchise. But the modern day success of the defending World Series champions is troublesome for some owners around the league who refuse to push the limits of their spending.
Why MLB salary cap is a negative
MLB is the only major sport that does not have a hard salary cap. They are also the top league with how strong their seat at the table is when it comes to bargaining for their own share of the pie.
Teams do have a deterrent from crossing the highest thresholds of the luxury tax, but the Dodgers understand the positives outweigh the cost of money and a draft pick. Rather than limiting how much a player can earn on the open market, they are able to seek out top dollar.
Players in other leagues can receive open market deals, but the salary cap does not allow them to reach anything close to MLB. Another factor with potentially implementing an MLB salary cap is it presumably would be accompanied by a floor as well, which some owners may not have interest in due to it requiring they spend more aggressively.
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