Dodgers’ Skubal Trade Could Push MLB Toward a Lockout

“The hysteria is coming. The lockout is coming,” Rosenthal wrote, according to Bleacher Report.

And this might be much more serious than baseball’s last labor stoppage.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that some owners believe there is a possibility the league won’t play at all in 2027 if MLB and the players cannot reach a new agreement.

That would be catastrophic for baseball.

But the Dodgers’ latest blockbuster helps explain why the two sides could be heading toward such an ugly fight.

Los Angeles already entered the season with one of the most talented and expensive rosters ever assembled. Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto were apparently not enough.

Now add a back-to-back Cy Young winner.

The Dodgers aren’t breaking any rules. In fact, Rosenthal’s larger point is that Los Angeles is simply operating better than everyone else.

But MLB’s growing competitive-balance debate isn’t going away.

Commissioner Rob Manfred has publicly discussed concerns from fans who believe there is a lack of competitive balance across baseball. He has also argued that fans in smaller markets should enter a season believing their team legitimately has a chance to win and retain the stars those organizations develop.

That becomes a difficult sell when the Dodgers can seemingly add another superstar whenever they want.

The obvious battle looming over the next CBA is a salary cap.

Owners could push for a system that limits how much organizations can spend, potentially preventing teams like Los Angeles from assembling rosters with payrolls significantly beyond most of the league.

Players, meanwhile, have historically resisted a hard salary cap because of the limitations it could place on salaries.

That sets up a potentially brutal negotiation.

The previous MLB lockout lasted from December 2021 until March 2022 and delayed Opening Day. This time, there are already warnings that the consequences could be significantly worse.

And if baseball really loses part—or somehow all—of the 2027 season, the Skubal trade might be remembered as one of the moments that poured gasoline on an already burning debate.

The Dodgers didn’t create MLB’s economic system.

They’re just taking advantage of it better than everybody else.

But after adding another superstar to an already ridiculous roster, baseball’s other owners might finally decide they’ve seen enough.

The Dodgers are trying to win another World Series.

Their dominance could also help push MLB toward its biggest labor battle in decades.