By Tim Clark / / Baseball, Column
Two

The trade deadline has come and gone.

Who cares?

There are still two months of compelling baseball left to play.

Big deal.

The game as we know it is over. The final nail in the coffin was hammered home by, who else, the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend.

Thank God.

The Dodgers traded away some suspects in order to acquire back to back Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal. The Dodgers have more aces than the rest of their division foes combined. The Dodgers just keep adding to their payroll. They have far more resources than any other team in baseball. It will now require a massive upset to prevent the Dodgers from winning a third straight world championship.

Salary cap, here we come. How long I’ve waited for thee.

Baseball has needed a salary cap for a long time. Of course the players will object to it, but it was always the stubborn owners who stood in the way of doing what is best for the game. Have a balanced playing field. You have 30 teams, yet only eight —maybe— of them have a chance to win the World Series.

The NFL is superior for a lot of reasons. One of them is that fans in Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and Cleveland —okay, maybe not Cleveland— know their teams have just as much chance of winning a Super Bowl as the teams in New York, LA, Dallas, and Philadelphia. It isn’t who spends the most, but who spends the best. It rewards well run organizations and well coached teams.

Think about it. The Dodgers finally put together a team good enough that Dave Roberts couldn’t screw it up. Having said that, the Dodgers will still be good in a salary cap system. They are a well run organization with good people in charge. A salary cap would prevent them from literally acquiring every high priced player that comes down the road. Oh, and I would assume those ridiculous deferred payments would be no more. Check this out.

 


It is absurd that this was allowed by Major League Baseball.

The same will be true at the other end of the baseball spectrum. Cheap owners such as Bob Nutting will have to raise payroll to at least the salary floor. There will be no more hoarding revenue sharing money. And if these small market teams have poor management like in Pittsburgh they certainly won’t be guaranteed to be contenders.

On the other hand, teams like Milwaukee, Tampa, and Cleveland who have done everything right will now have much more legitimate shots at a World Series. As it stands now, these three small market teams consistently do everything right from player development to making shrewd moves. In the end, however, they ultimately get eliminated by bigger spenders. Teams that can afford to make mistakes in player development and acquisition because they can just go buy the next guy.

There are some who call that competitive balance because those small market teams are competitive. Yet Milwaukee and Tampa have never won a World Series, and Cleveland hasn’t won one in 78 years.

Another big difference for baseball is the teams don’t share TV revenue. Every team makes a local deal for TV rights. Obviously LA, New York, and other big markets will be able to make much bigger deals than small market teams. Football, because there is no local TV, shares all TV revenue equally. Another gigantic reason why a salary cap is necessary.

Every other sport has some form of salary cap. Baseball players and agents want you to believe those sports were all wrong and baseball is doing it right. After all, baseball is a business. Every team should be allowed to run their business as they see fit.

I’ve said it a million times. Sports may be businesses, but they are not traditional businesses. Sports rely on fans being invested, and to be invested you need to see some hope. Hope makes fans show up. People that view baseball as a traditional business either live in a big market or simply just don’t get it.

Big name players and their agents will fight this with all they’ve got. Bryce Harper, Paul Skenes, Tarik Skubal will all rail against a cap. What those players can’t seem to get through their heads is that while they will still make a fortune, middle and lower level players will make more. The only difference is all the good players won’t be on the same damn team.

There is likely to be a lockout because of the players union’s disdain for a salary cap. It could be a long lockout, so get used to watching a lot of Cornhole and darts. If you are a true baseball fan it will be worth it.

Baseball has been in dire need of a salary cap. The owners seem to finally be in agreement. Ironically, it was the biggest spenders who put the exclamation point on that fact.

Tweet of the Week

Although I thought Pirates GM Ben Cherington made some nice trades yesterday at the trade deadline, his track record in Pittsburgh warranted this tweet.

 


The Weekly Shiny Penny

Don Kelly, Pirates manager, was ejected during a pseudo rain delay on Sunday. The conditions were allowed to get to a dangerous point, and it took the Reds pitcher to complain before they did something. When they did, it wasn’t to put the tarp on but to keep pouring diamond dry on the field. It was ridiculous to the point that umpire Dan Bellino should suspended. Don Kelly has had a rough stretch, but he was 100% correct here.

 


A PennyFor May Final Thoughts…

Some thoughts on MLB’s trade deadline…

  • Baltimore was one of those teams that were in between on whether to sell or buy. The O’s waved the white flag. Adley Rutschman, once the Orioles golden boy, was shipped to Boston for a mint of prospects. The Orioles may have won that trade. Taylor Ward and others were also shipped out.
  • The Tigers appear to be regrouping. They still have a lot of young talent, so it isn’t really a rebuild.
  • I thought the Phillies would trade for Ward, but instead they traded for second baseman Luis Arraez. Arraez does something the Phillies don’t do well, and that is not striking out. However, three players will have to move positions. Bryce Harper moves to right field, where he won’t be able to throw anyone out. Bryson Stott moves to third, and Alec Bohm will now get booed over at first base. Meanwhile Trea Turner and his sieve of a glove stays put at shortstop. Make it make sense.
  • The Pirates brought in three upgrades to their bullpen. Can you say too little too late?
  • The Cubs are clearly going all in. Something that could be risky if there is a long lockout next year. If they don’t win this year, and I don’t think they will, then some of these pickups may not see the field for them again.
  • The Rays, Guardians, Red Sox, Astros, and Yankees all made big moves, and I still have no idea who wins the American League.
Just my two cents…