One of the hot topics during this Major League Baseball offseason is that of the transactions the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers have been conducting. Some fans may see it as the Dodgers attempting to purchase another World Series title, but to Commissioner Rob Manfred, he went public to say that he believes Los Angeles has “gone out and done everything possible, always within the rules that currently exist, to put the best possible teams on the field, and I think that’s great for the game.”
What is the baseball commissioner smoking? He added “Disparity should be, it certainly is, at the top of my list of concerns about what’s occurring in the sport. When I say I can’t be critical of the Dodgers – they’re doing what the system allows. If I’m going to be critical of somebody, it’s not going to be the Dodgers. It’s going to be the system.”
Well, for Christ’s sake, you ARE the commissioner so fix the damn system! As a lifelong Pittsburgh Pirates fan, a team from a small market, essentially, their season for this year is over before it begins. To clarify that, be real about this fans, do you really believe that Buccos have the talent to at least compete for a wild card spot or a division title? Even if they play well enough to get one of the wild card opportunities, they are in the National League where the Dodgers exist. They are worlds apart from having a shot at beating the Dodgers in a seven-game series.
That leaves us Pirates fan to ponder…what’s the point of the season then? One thing to look forward to is watching Paul Skenes in his sophomore season coming off winning the Rookie of the Year honors. That, and Skenes has said he is developing new pitches. After that? Pittsburgh might and probably will flirt with finishing the season over .500 but really, a playoff victory does not seem anywhere in sight.
This can be said for a handful of teams that have no hope of going far into the postseason and unlike other major sports that have salary caps and a much better parity situation, baseball is alone in having just a couple of teams that will threaten for a world title year in and year out. It’s all about the benjamins and teams like the Dodgers, Yankees, and Mets have plenty of dollars to throw out at the game’s best players.
Consider this…Los Angeles in the last two years have brought in Shohei Ohtani (one of the greatest players to grace the diamond with some saying since Babe Ruth’s heyday. This is because Ohtani is also an outstanding pitcher), and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (a three-time M.V.P. in the Pacific League and a triple crown winner thrice and this will be just his second season in MLB. In the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan, Yamamoto’s numbers off the mound are ridiculous. A 70-29 record with an ERA of 1.82 and 922 strikeouts).
Then there is the signing of Blake Snell who most recently played for the Giants and Padres but got his start in Tampa where he posted a record of 21-5 in 2018 and led the majors with an impressive 1.89 ERA. Also resigned to a new deal is Will Smith who has spent his entire career in Dodger blue. He has become the regular catcher in the lineup. Finally, there is Tyler Glasnow who joined Los Angeles last season after spending eight years in Tampa and Pittsburgh.
Between Ohtani, Yamamoto, Snell, Smith, and Glasnow, those five players make up a payroll that totals $392 million. No other team is even close. The New York Mets are at $321 million. This offseason contract signings among all teams have hit the $4.6 billion mark. However, the Mets and Dodgers represent one-quarter of that total and that in a word is OUTRAGEOUS.
Does Commissioner Manfred really believe this is fair? While that being said, ESPN’s Chris Canty, a former NFLer and part of the “Unsportsmanlike” morning show was on the air on February 19 talking about this topic. What Canty said is something I don’t personally believe. He said that there are venture capitalist companies out there that will purchase part of a team and are willing to do that and this would provide plenty of money to any Major League Baseball team to compete with the Dodgers and Mets of the league.
Canty went on to say owners aren’t doing that because “they don’t want to.” Perhaps owners don’t want to give up part of their ownership, or this statement is simply not true. Baseball desperately needs a salary cap in my opinion and a better parity is a must. Take last season for example. The Chicago White Sox had a tremendously awful season losing a record 121 games. Will they be competing for a playoff spot in 2025? Get real.
The Florida Marlins lost 100 games. Colorado? 101 losses and 37 games behind first place. Florida finished 33 games back and the Washington Nationals 24 behind the division winning Phillies. The other Los Angeles team, the Angels lost 100 games and were 25 ½ games behind Houston. Those Chi-Sox? A crazy 51 ½ games back from the Guardians. The Dodgers? 98 wins for the most in MLB.
Finally, let’s look at the Dodgers’ current roster. It’s nearly a Hall of Fame list of who’s who. Clayton Kershaw, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and the amazing Shohei Ohtani. Even though October is a long way off, and the 2025 World Series teams await, don’t expect the Pittsburgh Pirates, Marlins, White Sox, Rockies, Angels, or Nationals to be there. It ain’t happening. So, I ask again…why play the season?
Sure, for baseball purists, especially for those in those losing teams mentioned above, they might enjoy just watching the game of baseball or waiting for the league’s superstars to come to their ballparks just to see some of the biggest names in the sport. But waiting for a playoff game? These fans may be waiting for a long time.
Check this out…the Los Angeles Angels currently hold the longest playoff drought in baseball not having had a playoff game in 10 years last playing in the American League divisional series in 2014. Pittsburgh is next with a nine-year drought. Colorado? Six years and waiting. The Nationals have gone five seasons without and the Chicago Cubs four.
If you are thinking of the World Series oh boy. The Cleveland Guardians (Indians) last won a World Series in 1948. That was 75 years ago. The Milwaukee Brewers, who were also the Pilots, can’t even claim a league title in the last 55 years. The same can be said for the San Diego Padres. It’s 48 and counting for the Seattle Mariners who in 48 years have not won a World Series. My Pittsburgh Pirates last won the title in 1979, and I was there in Three Rivers Stadium to witness it. That was 45 years ago.
The list goes on with Baltimore (40), Detroit (39), Mets (37), Oakland (35), even the once mighty Cincinnati Reds have not popped a champagne bottle in 34 seasons. The Minnesota Twins are at 33 seasons and counting with the Rockies right behind at 32. Rounding out this list is the Toronto Blue Jays last winning the World Series in 1993, 31 years ago and the Tampa Bay Rays without a title in 27 years.
So, Commissioner Rob Manfred, do you really believe there is any parity in Major League Baseball? Or should we just rename the league to “the Los Angeles Dodgers and the rest.”
