MLB executive sounds new alarm about potential lockout

It's no secret that numerous members of the MLB community are worried that regular-season games could be postponed and eventually cancelled due to what seems to be an inevitable lockout, which remains on track to begin once the collective bargaining agreement between team owners and the MLB Players Association expires on Dec. 1, 2026. 

On Thursday, Evan Drellich of The Athletic shared that MLB wants a "hard" salary cap, similar to what the NHL has, to "create firm limits in three areas: club payroll, individual contract length and individual player salary." According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, owners "are ready to burn the f---ing house down" and jeopardize the entire 2027 season to get their way. 

Why owners are ready to go to war over a salary cap

"Nearly every owner believes MLB needs a salary cap," Passan explained. "Its presence, owners say, immediately would juice franchise values, with the labor cost essentially fixed and no more chasing [Los Angeles Dodgers] teams spending $500M annually on players. At the same time, they say, it would provide a pathway to competitive balance, which they believe is entirely out of whack. They think a salary cap will fix everything..."

A January report revealed that the Dodgers adding star closer Edwin Diaz and outfielder Kyle Tucker to their roster via big-money deals this offseason left unnamed league owners "raging" over how much money the 2024 and 2025 World Series champions are able to spend on talent. That said, MLBPA deputy executive director Bruce Meyer hinted during a chat with Drellich that the union won't be changing its stance regarding any proposed salary cap during the upcoming season. 

"Salary caps in the other sports have not led to competitive balance," Meyer insisted. "In fact — baseball, which is the only one of the four major sports that does not have a salary cap — actually has better competitive balance than the other sports. A salary cap punishes competition, punishes clubs that want to go out and acquire the best players and put the most exciting product on the field for the fans. It gives owners who prefer not to compete an all-purpose excuse not to do so."

Is there any reason for baseball fans to have hope that games won't be scrapped in 2027? 

For the most part, casual sports fans care little about millionaires-versus-billionaires arguments. Such supporters simply want to watch their favorite clubs play the game. 

One team president seems to think the league's media-rights deals could be a reason fans get a 162-game season next year. 

"The only reason I'm confident we're not going to miss games," that president told Passan, "is because of what TV can do for us."

Drellich and others continue to say that a December lockout "is widely expected." It's far too early for anybody to guess just how long the next work stoppage will last.