The big money narrative is simply the truth, whether we try to explain it away as something else or not.
It certainly helps there is no doubt about that, however, big money and weak development doesn’t work either. Ask the Mets, Phillies, and Angels about that. The Dodgers are a machine in every area.
The real outlier is the Rays. They spend very little but their development is off the charts and they are the shrewdest traders in the business.