It’s time. The MLB needs a salary cap. The fact that the Los Angeles Dodgers can spend 308 million dollars according to Spotrac while the Miami Marlins sit at a measly 47 million is beyond absurd. Starting pitchers Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell’s combined salary for the Dodgers is 61 million dollars. That’s more than three entire teams: Athletics, White Sox and the aforementioned Marlins.
There will be a skill gap in sports, that’s how competition works. Teams like the Celtics and Lakers in the NBA will always be good, because good players want to play for good teams. That’s natural. But to say that it’s fair for teams like the Dodgers, Yankees and Mets to have the clear advantage every year simply because they can afford it is insane.
This can be seen even more extremely in France’s soccer system, where according to Football Reference, Paris Saint-Germain, the winners of 10 titles in 12 years have outspent the next highest spenders by more than double. While this case is extreme, it is possible over time that baseball giants like the Dodgers would be able to reach this point of dominance.
The current system for salary regulations involves a simple Competitive Balance Tax, or luxury tax. According to the MLB website, any amount above 241 million dollars would be subject to a 20% tax. This can increase to 50% if the threshold is exceeded in consecutive years. Additionally, a surcharge will be added to amounts 20, 40 and 60 million dollars over the threshold.
This has not stopped everyone, with four teams exceeding the threshold. The Mets and Dodgers have gone so far as to exceed the threshold by over 60 million dollars, therefore paying the maximum amount in taxes to the league. While this tax may deter some teams from overspending, the penalties realistically only act as a barrier. This allows only the richest clubs
that have the excess money to spend the maximum amount. Putting a hard salary cap on teams would encourage teams like Saint Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals – who both spend just below half the tax threshold – to spend more on salaries and better players to push for a title.
No system can ever be perfect, as historical success and large fan bases will always attract players to big markets. However the current system is so flawed that it strangles teams without the allocated cash flow, stopping teams from being able to build a franchise that will last.
Money doesn’t equal success, however as the Dodgers showed last year and will continue to show, it certainly helps.
