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FWIW – Ohtani is only making 2M$ a year for now. In 2033 he starts getting 68M$ a year for the next 10 years for a total of 680M$
during those 10 years. That might make it stressful for the Dodgers to stay under a hard ceiling.I’ve said before that there ought to be a hard floor, too. Take a designated percentage of each team’s revenue, add it all together, and divide by 30 teams. Each tram gets an equal share. Factor that in to where the ceiling would need to be.
Something drastic needs to be done. There are too many empty seats at too many ballparks. Negotiations that consist of everybody playing hog need to end. Let certain players’ reps and certain owners’ reps sit across from each other and talk it out face-to-face, man-to-man.
FWIW – Ohtani is only making 2M$ a year for now. In 2033 he starts getting 68M$ a year for the next 10 years for a total of 680M$
during those 10 years. That might make it stressful for the Dodgers to stay under a hard ceiling.The current CBT system doesn’t really work that way. There are two separate payrolls. The cash payroll and the CBT payroll. The CBT payroll determines the tax. The Dodgers are being charged $46M per year for Ohtani on the CBT payroll. The number is $46M instead of $70M because of the deferrals so when it comes time for Ohtani to actually receive his deferred salary a decade from now there will be no charge on the CBT books.
gscottar, I am not crying a river over the Dodgers experiencing stress a decade from now. Now another potential issue might be how this alleged fraud business concerning their principal owner plays out over the next couple months before CBA stuff gets underway. I’ve only scanned a story but understand at this point there are accusations and denials, and that is about it. Supposedly the alleged conduct will not affect the Dodgers and the owner’s abrupt sale of his interest in the Lakers has nothing to do with anything. No telling how all that might look a couple months from now.
As a follow on to my previous comment. Here is a taste of how this convoluted billionaire money shenanigans might be bleeding into Dodger territory. This is a snip from an article in The Dodger Way, a news site that is part of the Fansided network. Not sure how legit exactly, but looks pretty legit.
“In terms of MLB revenue sharing, AMP’s $1.45 billion in debt decreases the Dodgers’ required revenue share. Tie that in with the Dodgers’ existing revenue sharing/TV rights loophole that dates back to Frank McCourt’s ownership and Walter’s eventual sale of Time Warner Cable’s rights, and the team is being accused of keeping control of hundreds of millions of dollars that would otherwise be distributed to smaller-market teams under MLB’s rules.
These findings cast a pall over the Dodgers’ success under Walter’s ownership since 2012, and may make it impossible for LA to spend at their current level in the future if things continue to trend in the wrong direction.”
A link to the article if you want to set your head spinning.
https://dodgersway.com/mark-walter-dodgers-charade-finally-been-revealed-future-in-peril?utm_source=RSSSo I bring this all up and on this thread because the Dodgers are the biggest gorilla in the room, and depending upon how this all goes over the next couple months it could confound things this winter in some way or other.
It would not surprise me if he ends up selling the Dodgers since his other sports teams are on the block or have already been sold. It seems to me that these intra party transfers of funds are kind of like a ponzi scheme and now he has to come up with a lot of cash to undo the potentially illegal transfers.
Now, how this impacts the CBA I don’t know. I also don’t know if this really tells us anything about how and why the Dodgers have won three world series since 2020. They may have had a slush fund to use I don’t know but it still doesn’t explain the Mets because the Mets are just as big of a gorilla as the Dodgers yet the Mets are a laughingstock. That is an inconvenient truth to the crowd claiming that the Dodgers are ruining baseball.
I will maintain that the Dodgers could spend $1 Billion a year on payroll and no one would care if they weren’t winning. It is the constant winning that drives people crazy. If it was just money you would hear folks being apocalyptic about the Mets but instead it is crickets.
One gorilla is six times larger than the other.
Per Spotrac:
“The Los Angeles Dodgers owe more than $1.1 billion in deferred salaries to their players, while the New York Mets owe approximately $181 million in future deferred commitments.”
As I have mentioned there are many different ways to measure wealth.
Net Worth of MLB owners per betmgm:
1. Steve Cohen (Mets) – $22 Billion
2. Rogers Comminucations (Blue Jays) – $18.3 Billion
3. Mark Walter (Dodgers) – $13.3 BillionMLB Team Values per Forbes:
1. Yankees – $8.2 Billion
2. Dodgers – $6.8 Billion
3. Red Sox – $4.8 Billion
4. Cubs – $4.6 Billion
5. Giants – $4 Billion
6. Mets – $3. 2 Billion2026 Cash Payrolls Per Cot’s:
1. Mets – $347 Million
2. Dodgers – $337 Million
3. Yankees – $301 MillionCBT Payrolls Per Cots:
1. Dodgers – $430 Million
2. Mets – $362 Million
3. Yankees – $341 MillionLargest MLB Contract of All Time Per Cot’s:
Juan Soto (Mets) $765 Million
Last World Series Championship:
1. Dodgers- 2025
2. Red Sox – 2018
3. Cubs – 2016
4. Yankees – 2009
5. Blue Jays – 1993
6. Mets – 1986There are a few different behomths and gorillas in MLB but apparently only one of them is ruining baseball. It is the one doing the most winning. Not a coincidence.
A few years ago I made a comment on how well ran I thought the Dodgers were. The response I got was “well they haven’t won a World Series since 1988.”
Now that they have won three World Series since 2020 the response is ” They are only winning because of their money, they are ruining baseball, and anyone else with their wealth could do that.”
Yeah, gscottar, the Dodgers have been a first rate operation for my entire lifetime. Along with the Cardinals and Giants, they’re the gold standard of the NL.
Last 20 World Series which were won by 12 most valuable franchises:
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2018
2017
2016
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006Just two exceptions – 2019 (Nationals) and 2015 (Royals). And the Nationals are complicated because they probably would be top 12 if they were winning more lately.
That’s my issue. Not the Dodgers. Just that 12-18 teams have little to no chance every season because of lack of resources. But I admit that the Brewers and even more interestingly, the Rays, are doing their best to buck this trend. So it is possible, just extremely difficult to thread that needle without resources. On the other hand, all the resources in the world don’t seem to have done much for the Mets. The Rays and Mets are truly the 2 outliers though.
I’d like to see some additional revenue sharing or draft incentives to help even the playing field. That’s actually worse for the Cardinals, but probably better for baseball in general. I’m ok with floors and caps if they make sense, but not ok with implementing them and not addressing these other issues. Just implementing a cap would be wildly stupid.
Anyway, just my 2 cents.
There are many problems in baseball and the Dodgers’ business model is among them, IMO. But it may unravel soon.
The allegation that the Dodgers may have hidden money from revenue sharing will have gotten the other owners’ attention.
Some non-negative news. Manfred says the two sides are meeting regularly and says “we want to play in 2027.”
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/49711803/rob-manfred-amid-mlb-labor-talks-says-want-play-27
Another interesting thing I have read over the years is that Steven Cohen wanted to model the Mets after the Dodgers. Why would we want to do that? It isn’t because he dreamed someday of having their level of money. He already has more money than them. The real answer is he knew that they also do many more things that led to their winning than having deep pockets. Of couse Cohen has failed thus far.
https://nypost.com/2021/11/28/steve-cohen-trying-to-replicate-dodgers-with-mets-moves/
Look, if Walter has committed fraud and done illegal acts I hope he gets busted. If that happens they will just be bought by another wealthy ownership group. LA is always going to have a lot of resources but to act like they are the only welathy team in MLB is naive and to act like they are the only problem MLB has while the other 29 teams are just miserly saints being picked on by the blue giants from Hollywood is fantasy.
Jnevel is correct in that the wealth gap in MLB has several teams feeding at the trough, not just one.
I’d like to see some additional revenue sharing or draft incentives to help even the playing field. That’s actually worse for the Cardinals, but probably better for baseball in general. I’m ok with floors and caps if they make sense, but not ok with implementing them and not addressing these other issues. Just implementing a cap would be wildly stupid.
I agree with most of this jnevel. I am in favor of strengthening the CBT. There should be a 100% tax rate for every dollar over the limit and it should apply to first time offenders. Second time offenders get a 125% tax, and third time gets 150%. A draft pick should be taken away for each year you over the limit starting with a first rounder. Those penalties would get the attention of the blue bloods.A salary floor should be implemented with the same penalties as the cap penalties.
I am fine with revenue sharing and tv sharing but only with a salary floor. Otherwise the cheapskate welfare teams will just pocket more free money and continue to whine about the Dodgers. If the small market owners don’t want to spend their revenue sharing allotment then they shouldn’t be owners.
Thanks GScottar! The problem with getting traction on my idea is why would the owners who have all the resources want to give more of them to owners without? It would be just giving money away. It essentially would prop up the value of those lesser franchises in the long run and lower the value of the top group. It would be hard to get that to happen unless baseball sees an equity crisis that is hurting everyone. The problem is that right now the equity crisis is only aimed at the Dodgers. I’m not sure we end up with the right solution through that lens, especially if it’s shown that the Dodgers have been cheating all along. That may give an excuse for and downplay the real issue.
I also wish the fans could be part of the negotiations! I feel like both sides are trying to maximize what they can take from the fans because they have a monopoly on what the fans want. But there is no hope of that concession ever.
I agree with many of GScottar’s solutions. Share more revenue (not all – I kind of like rewarding better run organizations), salary floor, and bigger penalties for going over a top threshold. Makes sense.
Thanks jnevel. I agree that having the wealthy owners voluntarily give up their revenue is going to be difficult. Manfred has a tough sell on that one. Somehow the NFL was able to come up with a system like that. It doesn’t prevent the same teams winning every year (think Patriots and Chiefs) but at least it does give smaller markets like KC a chance to have a dynasty.
As a sidebar I am a Chiefs fan I can attest to the fact that sports fans do not like seeing the same teams win every year. Several of my friends gave me grief last year when the Chiefs didn’t make the playoffs. Chiefs fatigue was a real thing. I think the same thing applies to the Dodgers. Dodgers fatigue has swept the nation. People are tired of seeing then win all of the time which is why I think everyone is pouncing on salary cap mania and Mark Walter mania. Everyone wants to believe that there is a simple and nefarious reason for the Dodgers success. Perhaps they have been doing nefarious activities but I highly doubt that explains all of their success.
As for me, before I lose too much sleep on the Dodgers I am more concerned with the Brewers. They are ruining the NL Central with all of their built in and nefarious advantages. Perhaps Manfred and his CBA hacks can figure out a way to reign in the Brewers and give the rest of us in the NLC a break! 🙂
Most are on the players side. They celebrate their use of the market but the same people are very critical of equally uniquely talented for any amount over a million a year salary Plus the bonus and the perks.
The third party no one considers is the fan. I used to go to gmes at a reasonable price, reasonable priced food and drink and reasonable priced parking. No More
MLB’s proposed salary cap for 2027: $245.3M.
The Dodgers already have $455M committed to player salaries for 2027.
That’s nearly $210 MILLION above the proposed cap before the 2027 season even begins.Under MLB’s proposal, 8 teams would have to cut a combined $578M in payroll.…
— Michaela Bennett (@MichaelaB_22) August 26, 2026
I’m not sure where this person is getting her numbers but that doesn’t look accurate to me. According to Cot’s the Dodgers have $363M in CBT payroll obligations for 2027. Still way over the proposed cap but I am always dubious about false or innacurate information. I guess it would be true if the Dodgers end up having $92M in arbitration salaries, which seems unlikely, nor would she know that in advance.
Also, if a cap is imposed (which I think is unlikely) it would probably be phased in over time.
Good comments all. Over the last theee years team values on average have increased by a greater percentage than average player salaries. Thus management is incentivized to keep the status quo as much as possible, while labor will want to move towards getting more of that increase in value.
Now averages can be deceiving. Just like in personal wealth these days, the average team value increase in MLB is heavily weighted at the top. Thus management also has members that want the chance to tap into those value increases.
And it takes two to tango, so we should see some movement towards a little more revenue sharing. But the players are going to need something, and a salary cap is not going to fly. The players will never agree to give up benefits so that management retains all the rewards.
Major League Baseball today proposed drastic changes to its offseason calendar, including shortening free agency to a two- to three-week window every offseason, sources tell ESPN. The details of the proposal:
– A free agent dead period until the first day of the Winter Meetings…
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 27, 2026
Union executive director Bruce Meyer: pic.twitter.com/U6lvA45kpX
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) August 27, 2026
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