MAJOR League Baseball is at risk of shutting down in 2027.
The MLB collective bargaining agreement expires after the 2026 season, and there are fears that the league and the MLBPA won’t agree to a new deal.
Rob Manfred is pushing for a salary cap in Major League Baseball[/caption]
The MLBPA is opposed to a salary cap and could lockout the 2027 season[/caption]
Salaries in Major League Baseball are ballooning, and owners are looking to curb their spending.
Because of that, commissioner Rob Manfred is pushing to implement a salary cap in baseball, per The Athletic’s Evan Drellich
However, this goes against the wishes of the players and will be a major point of contention in CBA negotiations.
MLBPA debuty Bruce Meyer recently said that the players bear “the right amount of skepticism” regarding a salary cap.
The discrepancy in payrolls between the top teams in MLB and the bottom feeders has become a big subject of conversation in recent years.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have the biggest payroll in baseball at $337 million in 2025.
Meanwhile, the Miami Marlins’ payroll is just $67 million.
The owner of the Dodgers, Mark Walter, is worth $6.2 billion while the owner of the Marlins, Bruce Sherman, is only worth around $500 million.
These discrepancies make it hard for some teams to field competitive lineups, which is why the luxury tax exists.
Every dollar a MLB team spends over $241 million is taxed and redistributed to the lower teams.
The Dodgers currently pay $157 million in luxury tax, according to Spotrac.
Despite that tax being redistributed to teams, some still refuse to spend money leaving a major discrepancy among teams.
The commissioner believes that a salary cap, like the NFL has, could solve this problem.
Instead of the top teams’ salaries growing larger and larger every year, each team would be held to the same standards.
While this would probably make the league more competitive, players would never agree to this change.
Juan Soto just signed the biggest deal in American sports history at 15 years, $765 million with the New York Mets.
MLB All-Star Game Starters 2025
Here are the All-Star teams for the American League and National League at the Midsummer Classic on July 15 at Atlanta’s Truist Park, voted on by the fans.
American League Starters
- Catcher: Cal Raleigh, Seattle Mariners
- First base: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays
- Second base: Gleyber Torres, Detroit Tigers
- Third base: José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians
- Shortstop: Jacob Wilson, The Athletics
- Outfield: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
- Outfield: Javier Báez, Tigers
- Outfield: Riley Greene, Tigers
- Designated hitter: Ryan O’Hearn, Baltimore Orioles
National League Starters
- Catcher: Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers
- First base: Freddie Freeman, Dodgers
- Second base: Ketel Marte, Arizona Diamondbacks
- Third base: Manny Machado, San Diego Padres
- Shortstop: Francisco Lindor, New York Mets
- Outfield: Ronald Acuña Jr., Atlanta Braves
- Outfield: Pete Crow-Armstrong, Chicago Cubs
- Outfield: Kyle Tucker, Cubs
- Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers
Subsequent contracts are going to follow suit, and a salary cap would leave players missing out on a lot of money.
Because of that, the MLBPA likely won’t agree to a salary cap in the next CBA, leaving the league at an impass.
Major League Baseball last had a lockout from December 2, 2021 to March 10, 2022.
That lockout delayed the start of the season by around a week.
If a salary cap is proposed in the next CBA, it is entirely possible that a good chunk, or the entire 2027 season could be lost to negotiations.
MLB has never lost a season to a lockout, but the 1994 season lost the playoffs and World Series due to a labor dispute.
The league could make history with a full-season lockout in 2027.
