I grew up in New York City in the 1950s. In Brooklyn, to be exact, original home of the Dodgers, a team its fans affectionately nicknamed the “Bums,” because they’d routinely lose to the Yankees in the World Series (until 1955), which was fine with me because I was a Yankees fan. These were the golden years of baseball in NYC with Willie, Mickey, and the Duke in center field for the Giants, Yanks, and Dodgers, respectively.
As a kid I loved the Yanks’ domination, winning the World Series in 7 out of 10 years from 1949-1958. But that was when the “reserve clause” in players’ contracts could bind them to a team for life, and owners paid them far less than they were worth. In the 1960s the players formed a union, later won free agency, and since then sell their services to the highest bidder.
Now, I’m a Rockies fan and an objective old-timer who’s concerned about the long-term welfare of the game. The Dodgers, no longer bums, are endangering it with a sky’s the limit spending spree. In 2024 alone, they spent over $1 billion in free agency, more than the rest of the league combined. And they game the system with deferred-pay stretching out for decades.
The case for a salary cap
In our free market economy, bare-knuckle capitalists seek to drive their competitors out of business. But think of MLB as one big corporation with 30 separate subsidiaries that complement one another. The Yankees and Boston Red Sox are bitter rivals who play to sell-out crowds. They each want to win but neither wants to put the other out of business.
MLB is in the entertainment industry competing against other sports as well as other kinds of entertainment. Competitive parity among the teams that leads to tight divisional races drives more fans to the stands and to their TVs to watch meaningful games late in the season. Having a permanent elite of big-city teams with deep pockets routinely dominate while relegating most of the others to “also ran” status is bad for business.
It’s time for MLB to impose a real salary cap like the NFL, NBA, and NHL. The principle is well established that weaker teams need help to level the playing field. That’s why all the Leagues have a player draft, in which the last shall be first. The NFL even gives teams with the worst records an easier schedule next year. Instead of a salary cap, MLB levies a “luxury tax” on teams with the highest payrolls that it redistributes to teams with lower payrolls. But that’s not nearly enough to close the gap. In 2025, the Dodgers payroll is $304 million; Phillies, $279 mil; Mets, $277 mil; Yankees, $276 mil. At the very bottom are the Marlins at $44 mil; Oakland A’s, $54 mil; and White Sox, $61 mil. The league average is $152 million.
The Rockies example
The 2025 Rockies payroll is $110 million. With understandable frustration, local critics like to demonize Rockies’ majority owner Dick Monfort for not spending enough. The problem for Monfort and owners of teams in smaller markets is that lower cash flow limits their spending to their level of revenues. In big cities like NYC and LA local broadcast revenues are far greater than in places like Denver and St. Louis. NFL revenues from national broadcasts are enormous and are redistributed to all the teams equally. But revenues from MLB’s national broadcasts are much lower, as are the redistributed shares. If Monfort were to hike his payroll by a $100 million he’d have to raise capital to do so or mortgage the team. What critics really want isn’t just a new owner, but a philanthropist to buy the team. Who wouldn’t like that? But they’re in short supply.
In any given year, a low-budget team can have a miracle season and win the World Series, like the Rockies almost did in Rocktober 2017. Or the Dodgers could have all their superstars go lame and finish last. But the probability is teams with the most loot will regularly dominate. It won’t be easy for MLB to impose a salary cap, facing concerted opposition from big-city team owners and the league’s militant players’ union whose mentality was voiced by Oakland A’s slugger Brent Rooker: “Teams spending money is never bad for baseball and never bad for players. Ever. In any situation.”
Longtime KOA radio talk host and columnist for the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News Mike Rosen now writes for CompleteColorado.com.
