This Is the Way... to Ruin Baseball?! Salary Cap Chaos Incoming!

A Disturbance in the Force: Baseball Edition

Well kriff. Seems like those baseball slinging mudhorn eggs are about to hatch into a full blown salary cap standoff. Word on the Outer Rim—or you know from some Earth bound reporters—is that MLB owners are itching for a salary cap. After decades without one they're looking to shake things up. As a Mandalorian I’m all for shaking things up – keeps the bounties interesting. But this… this smells like a trap. This is not the way!

Credits vs. Beskar: A Tale of Two Teams

Let's talk credits shall we? The New York Mets are splashing around like they’re bathing in liquid beskar while the Miami Marlins are scraping by on Jawa scraps. This season the Mets are spending $323 million on players. The Miami Marlins are paying just over $67 million. It's like comparing a fully loaded Razor Crest to a beat up landspeeder. No wonder smaller market teams are feeling like they're facing a Sarlacc pit with a toothpick. This imbalance is a problem even Commissioner Manfred acknowledges it. "I am really cognizant of it and I'm sympathetic to fans in smaller markets who go into the season feeling like they don't have a chance in the world to win," Manfred said. “I think our game turns on fans having hope when you enter the season. I think it's a really important issue that we need to pay attention to."

The Union Strikes Back (With a War Chest)

Now the MLB Players Association (MLBPA)? They're not having any of this. “We've always believed in as free a market system as possible such that the individual player can realize his value against the backdrop of teams that are interested in his services," Tony Clark MLBPA president told The Athletic in February. A cap is an artificial lever that is the ultimate salary restrictor independent of where you are on the salary food chain." They've got a 'war chest' – a pile of credits earned from baseball cards and video games – to weather a potential lockout. Smart move. Never underestimate the power of a good stockpile. I know I don't! This isn't their first rodeo either; they fended off a salary cap back in '94.

Other Leagues: So This Is What It Feels Like

The NFL NBA and NHL all have salary caps. What is this a podrace where everyone gets a participation trophy? One expert even crunched the numbers and found that if baseball salaries were tied to revenue like in those leagues players would have earned an *extra* $2.3 billion over the past decade. Credits are credits and missing out on that much is enough to make any bounty hunter twitch.

Haves vs. Have Nots: A Tale of TV Rights

Part of the problem is the uneven distribution of media credits. The Los Angeles Dodgers make more than $300 million per year from their 25 year deal with Charter Communications (originally signed with Time Warner Cable in 2013) while smaller market teams like the Marlins make about $50 million. It's like getting paid in pure beskar ingots while others get... well folium! MLB hopes to wrangle a bigger national media rights deal but some folks are skeptical they can pull it off like the NBA or NFL. If they can't a salary cap might look more appealing. But I say let the best negotiator win. This is the way of the galaxy no?

I Have Spoken

So what's the verdict? Chaos looms credits are at stake and the future of baseball hangs in the balance. Will the players hold their ground? Will the owners cave? One thing's for sure: this Mandalorian will be watching. And if things get too crazy maybe I'll put a bounty on whoever's responsible. Just kidding... mostly. This is the way… to make a whole lot of noise apparently.