Congrats to the yankees and there 500 mil dollar payroll!

Salary cap is not the issue. If a salary cap was instituted the Yankees would still rule supreme and have even a bigger advantage. The money they would not be allowed to use for the team salary would go towards player development, scouting and other developmental tools. They would most likely have 50+ minor league teams so that they would start running the franchise by power of numbers. The more minor leaguers and minor league teams they would field would result in a better chance of producing the next phenom.

The only way to level the playing the field is to create a slotting system in the draft, add the international talent to the draft instead of being free agents (this is actually happening next CBA agreement), having a more stringent revenue sharing program (that actually penalizes the Yankees and other large market teams from spending the absurd amount of money that the other markets have no chance of matching), establishing a salary cap of sorts to go along with other guidelines that prevent them from using the unfair resources in other areas and establishing rules that do not allow teams (Yankees as an example) to go out and spend over $200 million in 3 players in one offseason.
 

Clueless????  When the Devil Rays have a 35 mil Salary in 1995, but bring in 177 million + revenue sharing + luxury tax, you tell me where that money is, and I'll agree with you!  Than answer why Major League Baseball is trying to enforce ownership to invest that money??? And than answer why most small market teams don't want a salary cap???


But I'm clueless

You just hate the Yankees and that's fine...

I'm so tired of the teams on the outside of the playoffs blaming the system.  I don't wanna see the Florida Gators play the Cincinnati Bearcats or Boise St for the BCS championship.

And baseball got it's taste of parity last season when the Phillies played the Rays in the World Series.  I think it was one of the lowest rated world series in it's history. 

People cry and cry that they wanna see someone different in the championship and they're tired of seeing the same teams.  Then when those teams get there, they don't watch.

This is a tired out argument.  If you wanna blame someone or something then blame the system.  Are the Yankees supposed to let the other teams sign the big free agents?  Do you want them to just tell CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett, "sorry we can't sign you, it wouldn't be fair".  If they didn't sign those players and weren't competitive people would be ridiculing them for money hoarding and being cheap.

And the Yankees were winning championships long before money was ever an issue.  What about the 20 championships they won before 1963?

Also the reasons the teams that have small payrolls, have small payrolls, is because they are not able to compete in the Free agent market and must settle for the scraps. In the economic world of baseball a marginal, average player on the FA market will cost considerably more than an in house minor leaguer. The minor leaguer might not put up the same type of production but will be able to put up enough production to make the cost saving move meanwhile instead of spending/wasting a few million dolalrs more for a player that will only add age and declining value to the team at an expense that will only add 1 win or 2 more than the minor leaguer who will cost less than $1 mil for the season.

The trade off of signing an established veteren is not cost efficient for the production instead of using a minor leaguer and finding out if they have what it takes to contribute at the major league level.

The less free agents means the teams are using their yougn players. The players ahve yet to meet arbitration or FA and are under team control which keeps their COSTS extremely low and under market value for the player. It is not until after the 6th year of service time that a player becomes a free agent and not until after the 3rd year of service time, unless a super 2, that they are arbitration eligible and get a raise based on their performance from the league minimums.

The low payrolls kept by teams allows them to be able to sign and keep the young players who evenutally become stars. Being able to have and keep payroll flexiblity for when this situation occurs is the only way a smaller market teams has the ability to keep/try to sign their young stars either before they reach free agency or when they reach the free agent market.

Find an article where most small market teams dont want a salary cap... Ill wait

This year the Red Sox owner along with the Pirates owner and other owners said it might be time for a salary cap after what the Yankees did this past off season.

If the Yankees don't win they will go out and buy up the premier FA. It doesn't matter the cost or their team salary.

The Yankees have a built in unfair advantage. If you do not acknowledge that fact you are ignorant.

NO problem give me one second BUT FYI


Baseball has had 10 different teams win the last 15 World Series, and 20 different clubs have captured the past 29.

So you shouldnt care how much money the Yankees spend,,, But I'll get you your article

Thank you for walking right into the mouse trap i set for you..... I was waiting for you to pull this out.....

First off baseball is 100% different since 1995 than it was 20 years ago. So what happened 30 years ago has nothing to do with the past 15 years because teams and the game of baseball is a completely different landscape.

So if Tampa Bay gets to the World Series, its Talent...

But if the Yankees get to the World Series its money

Posada, Jeter, Cabrera Cano,  50 % of the Yankees starters are home grown!  not to mention their closer Rivera

Hughes, Joba, etc


But im getting ur article I didn't forget

There is parity in terms of who actually wins the WS...There isn't parity in terms of who usually gets to the playoffs...What happens over 162 games is much more important.

The playoffs are about who has the best 2 pitchers, the best closer and the best 2-3 impact bats.

That's very true.

But throughout the course of 162 games, the talent difference really comes into play and money is a big time driving force in that....of course, scouting and things like that are also very very important.

The current MLB system doesn't reward an organization that develops and grows talent. It rewards the teams that spend the most. The numbers prove that out over the past 15 years. This year shows it in microcosm. The final four all are in the top 9 in OD payroll this year. Of the 8 teams in the playoffs this year, 4 came from the top 7 in payroll, 7 came from the top 18 (or the top 60% of payrolls) with one team outside of the top 60% of teams making the playoffs. Note that the Twins squeaked in due to a collapse of another top 10 payroll team in the last week of the season, otherwise it would have been 5 of the top 7 payroll teams making the playoffs.

By not having a system that give advantages based solely on demographics and geography, the NFL has provided a level playing field that engages all of their cities not just 4 or 5. Which seems to be a favorable formula since football is considerably more popular and profitable than baseball.

LOL   What mouse trap? Since 1995  9 (14 years) different teams have won the World Series

When you look at NY's homegrown talent you listed well outside of Jeter, Posada and Pettite you have three guys that would arguably not be "stars" anywhere else except New York.

And look at the rest of their team. On certain nights the only homegrown talent on the field at the start of the game is Jeter and Cano.

Now, the fact that they buy talent is not the issue. But it is the level of money that they are spending. New York's uncontrolled spending has thrown off the competitive balance in FA. If there is a star player out there and the Yankees are involved then the Yankees will have that player.

Teams should not be drafting guys and thinking "Well, we have him for six years and then he is a Yankee."

That is a problem and throws off the competitive balance of the league. We are getting to the point that KC, PIT, MIN, MIL, FLA etc are basically AAAA organizations for the rest of the league.

The fact that the four highest paid MLB players are on the one team is a problem in my eyes, but that is not even the real issue. The REAL issue is that those four players combined this year will make more than the entire salary of 1/3 of the league's teams.

That is a serious problem for the future of the league.

The Yankees have drastically thrown off the salary scales for everyone else. Not everyone can spend like the Yankees, but a lot of teams try. The Angels, Red Sox, Cubs, Tigers etc.

Because the Yankees do what they do the league is now divided into three divisions:

The spenders

The teams that can spend a little on FA here or there

And the teams that have no chance at FA's whatsoever.

Moreover, because of uncontrolled spending now even mediocre talent is out of the reach of smaller market clubs. CC makes what he makes, you think the Giants will be able to afford that when Lincecum's contract is up?

The Brewers made the playoffs last year, last year. Why didn't they make the playoffs this year? Because there is no way in Hell they could afford to keep CC Sabathia. And now look at the Brewers, they need to start thinking about trading away Fielder and Braun because THEY will become too expensive.

Minnesota, guess who's contracts are expiring? Mauer and Cuddyer. Now, Cuddyer has an option for 2011, but the point is this, think that the Twins will have the resources to keep both? I think Mauer likes it enough in MIN to stay but think of the money he would command on the open market. Would anyone except the Yankees or Red Sox be able to afford him?

Besides, the AL Central is a division of mid market teams, and one team that tried to play Ynakee-ball and has had it blow up in their face.

Look at the Tigers, they spent a ton of money poorly. Now their team is losing millions of dollars a year and probably has to start shedding salary soon. They tried to play Yankee ball and lost.

When you have one team spending at the level of the Yankees it throws off the curve for everyone else. That is what I am talking about here.

There is no parity in FA, the Yankees have made sure of that. And when you have two or three teams that can virtually buy up anyone they want, that puts the rest of the teams in the league at a competitive disadvantage.

If one contract busts for the Yankees it doesn't matter - they can spend more money to replace it. Again, look at how the Tigers spent money and it has largely blown up in their faces that is what should happen to teams that take that risk.

I guess that is what my argument boils down to: Risk.

The Yankees spend so much money that they can absorb an insane amount of risk. They can take monetary risks that no other team can take. And they have done it a level that it has greatly affected the salary structure of the rest of the league.

Therefore, one team has indeed greatly changed the game and will only continue to do so if left unchecked.

There is absolutely NO PARITY when it comes to which teams make the playoffs. There will be a team here and there that makes the playoffs that does not spend in the top 10 but they are few and far between. it takes everything going right for a team outside the top 10 in spending to make the playoffs.

Once a team makes the playoffs anything is possible but there is no parity in who makes the playoffs.

THE Marlins have won 2 World Series in the last 12 Years!!!  The Yankees have won 3

So its okay to have one third of the AL in a constant state of rebuilding? Its okay that every team in the AL except the Yankees, Angels and Sox maybe get one-three years of competition before it is back to rebuilding again?

Its okay that teams like the Royals, Mariners, Indians, Twins, Orioles, Jays and Rays need to have every star align and count on the big spenders having bad seasons to even DREAM about being competitive? Because you can cite the NL all you want, the reality is that the AL is dominated by the Angels, Red Sox and Yankees.

The AL Central is a division of mid markets and the only division where the unbalanced schedule actually helps because those teams are insulated against the big spenders on the coasts.

NL baseball is much more competitive. And trust me, the Mets would be doing the exact same thing if the Yankees weren't there doing it first.

How many playoff appearances for each franchise?

Here is a look at playoff teams to see the impact of payroll dollars. Here are some interesting stats.

There have been 112 playoff teams since 1995. The average payroll ranking of a playoff team is 9.88

The top payroll team has made the playoffs 79% of the time.
The top 5 payroll teams (or roughly 17% of of the league) have accounted for 31% of the 112 playoff teams
The top 10 payroll teams have accounted for 60% of the 112 playoff teams
The top 15 payroll teams have accounted for 78% of the 112 playoff teams

Conversely,
The bottom 10 payroll teams (or roughly 1/3) have accounted for 12% of the 112 playoff teams.
The bottom 5 payroll teams have accounted for 8% of the 112 playoff teams.

What I am saying for 2009 is:

50% of the playoff teams were from the top 7 teams in payroll.
62.5% of the playoff teams came from the top 10 payroll teams.
87.5% of the payroll teams (7 of 8) came from the top 18 payrolled teams.
12.5% or one team came from the bottom 12 payrolled teams.

I think you can see that the majority of playoff teams come from top 10 in payroll. Another way to look at this is that of the top 9 payroll teams 50% made the playoffs. Of the bottom 21 teams 14% made the playoffs. That trend is pretty consistent with the past 15 years.
....Conversely in MLB to have a 50/50 chance you have to be in the top 8 in payroll and from 1995 to 2008 there were 0 teams to move from the bottom 5 to the top 8. The highest jump of a bottom 5 team was the 2000 White Sox who went up to 14th in 2001 from the bottom 5. I think it is obvious why, in 2008 to jump from the 26th rank in MLB payroll to the 8th you would have to increase payroll by $63mm dollars...

For 2009 to get from the bottom 5 in payroll to the top 9 you would have to increase your payroll by $38mm.

Obviously increasing your payroll from 18 to 19 isn't going to be significant but the magic number here is 9 right, since half the playoff teams come from from the top 9 in payroll. To get from the bottom 10 (21st in salary) to the top 9 you will need to increase payroll by $32mm in 2009 or nearly 46%.

This is not parity

https://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704322004574475610659646236.html

A person familiar with team finances said the Yankees took in an astounding $380 million in ticket sales.

No other team in the league could even come close to that... The demographic/geography advantage of the Yankees is getting out fo control. They are playing within the rules but baseball and Bud Selig need to step in and put an end to this before baseball ruins itself.

The Mets have one of the highest Salaries in baseball when have they won the world series last????

You completely are way off, and every time I provide a fact to disprove your argument you start another argument... Im Done!


The Twins, Whitesox, Indians, Tigers, Red Sox, Yankees, etc... All consistently make the playoffs... All "stars" don't need to be aligned


Because the Royals, Oiroles, and maybe 1 or 2 other AL Teams dont make the playoffs its a problem?  NO THEY DONT SPEND MONEY ANYMORE, The Orioles used to Always be competitive in the 90's!!! 

Whats the Cubs Annual Salary?  When did they win last?


There are teams in every sport that just so happen to suck every year! It is what it is.... But its only when the yankees or Red Sox win is when these arguments come up

What fact... You have brought nothing to the table

I have shown a number of factst hat you ahve not even touched or recognized because you cannot say anything to debunk them or make a favorable argument.

Regarding the revenue sharing that you posted:

there's 2 things wrong with the current version: (1) Tons of money is hidden from it, and (2) It does nothing to encourage Scrooge owners from trying to have good teams. There are ways to fix those things in a way that is fair to both rich and poor teams. The problem is implementing them, not dreaming them up. I have a version I favor, but there are various ways you could do it.

How about how teams that play the Yankees on games that are televised on YES do NOT get any portion of money from that broadcast. But the revenue sharing is so fair.... Without that opposing team there would be no game.

This is exhausting, your worse than my wife!  When you realize baseball is a business, you will realize why your arguments contradict each other!

What was last years Ratings on the World Series????

Compare them to the ratings you will see Wed night!!!

Then tell me what you think the ratings would be if the Royals played the Nationals!!!


Its all about money my friend and it always will be, not saying its right but thats just the way it works... The Super Bowl is the Super Bowl, you always have great ratings because it is a one night event!

Enjoy your night

But you are very knowledgeable!!!!   No dis-respect! BOL with your plays