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The Los Angeles Dodgers took an aggressive approach in free agency for the second consecutive offseason as they added Blake Snell, Tanner Scott, Michael Conforto, Kirby Yates and Roki Sasaki to a roster that won the 2024 World Series.
That came one year after the team committed more than $1 billion to bring in Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and Teoscar Hernández.
Fans of other teams have become frustrated with the Dodgers’ willingness to spend and believe it is ruining baseball. Other team owners have publicly said that it is difficult to compete with L.A. for free agents.
Colorado Rockies owner Dick Monfort became the latest to call for the implementation of an MLB salary cap, via Mark Kiszla of the Denver Gazette:
“Something’s got to happen. The competitive imbalance in baseball has gotten to the point of ludicrosity now. It’s an unregulated industry,” Monfort told The Denver Gazette.
“The only way to fix baseball is to do a salary cap and a floor. With a cap, comes a floor. For a lot of teams, the question is: How do they get to the floor? And that includes us, probably. But on some sort of revenue-split deal, I would be all-in.”
Monfort further criticized the Dodgers and believes they are the reason why MLB needs a salary cap:
“The Dodgers are the greatest poster children we could’ve had for how something has to change,” said Monfort, who watched his division rivals in Los Angeles win a championship in 2024, the n add two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell and prized Japanese prospect Roki Sasaki.
“Sports are supposed to have some sort of fairness, right? There’s got to be some purity.”
MLB is the only major North American professional sports league without a salary cap or floor. However, outspending teams doesn’t necessary correlate to success.
Over the last 25 years, the team with the largest payroll in baseball has won the World Series just four times.
Any proposal of a salary cap by team owners would almost certainly be met with opposition from the MLB Players Association (MLBPA). That could set the stage for another lockout when the current collective bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1, 2026.
Blake Snell: Dodgers not ‘villains’ of MLB
Snell, who signed a five-year, $182 million contract with the Dodgers during the offseason, argued that the team shouldn’t be criticized for wanting to win.
“I don’t look at us as villains,” Snell began. “I look at us as a team that wants to win. If any other teams or fanbases want to get upset, you know what to do. Follow what the Dodgers are doing. They want to win, they’re spending money.
“That’s how you have to do it.”
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Unexpected slugger challenging Shohei Ohtani for NL MVP
This season, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is on the cusp of two ultra-rare feats. In MLB history, Barry Bonds is the only player to win three straight MVP awards — he won four consecutively — and he is also the only player to win more than three in his career, as he won seven total. If Ohtani can manage another MVP season this year, he will have won his third straight and his fourth total, joining two separate clubs consisting of just one other player, though Bonds sits alone in two higher clubs of his own creation. But in Ohtani’s quest to make history, there is one surprising slugger standing in the way. When we think of Philadelphia Phillies power-hitter Kyle Schwarber, second-deck home runs are usually the first thing that comes to mind. Truth be told, Schwarber has never really hit for average. His career batting average stands at .232, and his career-high average of any season is .266. Still, this has never prevented him getting on base at a high rate. Typically, players who aren’t well-rounded in all major metrics don’t see as much consideration for MVP honors. However, the NL MVP race seems to be coming down to Ohtani and Schwarber. This season, there aren’t many players excelling at hitting for both power and average. Currently, there are no hitters in the NL with a home-run total of at least 30 and a batting average of at least .290. This leaves an opening for Schwarber, who received MVP votes every year for the past three years, peaking at 15th in the voting. Below are Ohtani and Schwarber’s 2025 stats and their NL rankings in each: In most major stats, both these stars sit at or close to the top. And the fact that Ohtani’s stats lag far behind last year’s blowout performance only works to Schwarber’s advantage. Even Schwarber’s success rate in stealing bases is higher than Ohtani’s this year — and Schwarber’s sprint speed is in the mere 14th percentile. But is Schwarber really the frontrunner for NL MVP? Although Schwarber is having an incredible year, his numbers fall short of Ohtani’s. With 34 games left, there is still time to close the gap, but there is one other aspect of Schwarber’s game that makes his intriguing MVP case just slightly doubtful: He is primarily a DH. There has only been one primary DH win an MVP, and that was Ohtani last season. This season, the Dodgers’ two-way star is both a DH and a pitcher. But that raises yet another question. Ohtani returned to the mound on June 16, having missed over an entire year (in terms of pitching) due to an elbow injury which required Tommy John surgery. Since his return, Ohtani owns a lackluster 4.61 ERA in 10 starts. The Dodgers have been cautious with Ohtani, who is yet to have an outing that lasted at least 4.2 innings, and it isn't clear if Ohtani will be able to return to form before the season is over. Whether or not this will hurt his MVP case remains to be seen, but it surely won’t help unless he can improve. Pitching aside, Ohtani is the current MVP frontrunner. But to say that Schwarber is far behind would be an exaggeration.
Chicago Bears star says coaches are 'overdoing' it at practice
The Chicago Bears roughed up their preseason opponents, the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins, at joint practices this month. Cornerback Jaylon Johnson said the coaching staff has been trying to walk the line of being aggressive but not going overboard. Sometimes the Bears are going too hard, overdoing it at times. “I mean, even (defensive coordinator) Dennis Allen, he’s telling defense we live every day in practice,” Johnson told Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson during an appearance on “Night Cap” Thursday night. “So just really that mentality, as far as going and playing physical is, like, really, just honestly overdoing it really is the thing… What we say, like, toe the line, toe the line line between going too far and really pushing the limits.” Jaylon Johnson notices a big difference in the 2025 Chicago Bears Johnson has missed much of training camp due to a leg injury. He missed the physical practice between the Dolphins and Bears that had Omar Kelly of the Miami Herald complaining about how Allen was coaching up his defense. Johnson said that the entire coaching staff under new head coach Ben Johnson wants a tough and physical culture like has been seen in recent years with the Detroit Lions. “We’re gonna execute,” Jaylon said. “And it’s like, nah, it’s just about whooping the guys in front of you, like, really, like dominating and instilling your will. And I think really just preaching that goes a long way. Because I feel like even in Detroit, for a long time, they didn’t have talented guys, but they had a lot of guys that had grit, as they like to say over there, and guys that work hard, that are tough, and things like that.” Johnson is embracing the change. The Bears should. Dan Campbell’s teams have been successful in recent years in Detroit. The culture is certainly better than the one that folded under Matt Eberflus last season.
Cowboys' Micah Parsons seen taking bizarre action in preseason finale
Micah Parsons showed up for the Dallas Cowboys' preseason finale against the Atlanta Falcons in body only. The star pass-rusher showed no spirit and did not dress amid his hold-in for a contract extension. On Thursday, Parsons scrubbed the Cowboys from his social media feed. During Friday's game, he couldn't be bothered to be with his teammates on the sideline watching the whole game. Per a photo posted on X by The Athletic's Jon Machota, Parsons was seen lying down on a trainer's table during the contest. Parsons' actions come amid a turbulent week between his representation and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. In separate interviews, Jones told both Michael Irvin and ESPN's Stephen A. Smith that he did not plan to back down from his agreement with Parsons to work with agent David Mulugheta. During the pregame show on Friday, Jones boasted to 105.3 The Fan that defensive end is where the Cowboys have the most depth on the roster. "Frankly, our defensive ends may be the best depth, where we have the most talent of any position on the field," Jones said via Machota. "I'm excited about our depth and our numbers at pass rusher. ... I'm concerned because of having space on the roster to keep that many of our guys that have pass rushing ability." Following Friday night's game, the Cowboys' preseason is over. The situation between Jones and Parsons is not ideal for first-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer, who is tasked with trimming the roster to 53 players by Tuesday. If Parsons is traded or chooses not to play in Week 1, Schottenheimer is going to have to decide to take away depth from what Jones sees as a weaker part of the team to boost a unit that is without their best player because he won't negotiate with Mulugheta.
New Jersey Devils Reportedly Eyeing Massive All-Star Addition
As the Vancouver Canucks get ready for the upcoming season, the front office is now dealing with the potential of losing an All-Star. That would be Quinn Hughes, who has been involved in different rumors all offseason. There has been some thought that Hughes could leave town down the line, and the Canucks seem to be a little worried that it may happen. If he does leave Vancouver, there is one spot that makes all the sense in the world, and there appears to be interest coming from that team. Quinn Hughes to New Jersey? One landing spot for Hughes could be the New Jersey Devils, and he has been linked to this team for some time now. According to NHL insider Michael Russo, the Canucks want to get a deal done to keep Hughes in town, but the Devils will be pushing to land him. Hughes' brothers, Jack and Luke, both play for the Devils, giving even more thought to him potentially heading to New Jersey down the line. This has been a fear of the Canucks for some time, and will be something to keep an eye on. Hughes has two more seasons remaining on his current deal with the Canucks, and he is scheduled to make $7.8 million each year. The All-Star has been a central force for Vancouver over the years, and parting with him would be tough. Last season for the Canucks, Hughes put up 16 goals and 60 assists over 68 regular-season games. The veteran has posted at least 76 points in three straight seasons for the Canucks organization. But if the Canucks were to get the sense that he could leave the team, trading him would be smart asset management. Vancouver can't afford to lose Hughes for nothing, and the front office will try to do whatever it can to keep him around for the long haul.
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