DODGERS WORLD SERIES WIN COULD HAVE LEAGUE-ALTERING CONSEQUENCES
The Los Angeles Dodgers are only two wins away from returning to the World Series for the second straight season, which could have league-wide implications.
After winning the World Series last year, the Dodgers went out and managed to still get better, signing top free agents like Blake Snell and Rōki Sasaki. Los Angeles boasts a $350 million payroll, the highest in the league according to Spotrac, and has managed to acquire nearly every major player they’ve sought after including Shohei Ohtani.
Los Angeles’ spending habits may have an impact with the expiration of the current collective bargaining agreement between Major League Baseball and the MLB Players’ Association set for this offseason. There is already tension between the two sides, with a potential lockout expected, but one topic that has remained controversial between owners and players is the idea of implementing a salary cap in baseball.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan believes that if the Dodgers manage to become the first team to win back-to-back championships in 25 years, then owners will use that as reasoning why a salary cap should be implemented.
“The winner of the National League Championship Series could determine whether Major League Baseball is played in 2027,” Passan wrote Monday. “Owners across the game want a salary cap — and if the Dodgers, with their record $500 million-plus payroll, win back-to-back World Series, it will only embolden the league’s push to regulate salaries.
“Already, MLB is expected to lock out players upon the agreement’s expiration. Back-to-back championships by the Dodgers could embolden MLB and add to a chorus of fans who see a cap as a panacea for the plague of big-money teams monopolizing championships over the past decade. While the baseball itself will be indisputable, this NLCS is bigger than the game.”
Money does not buy championships in the MLB, but another Dodgers World Series win would certainly benefit those in favor of pushing for a salary cap. Expect a potential salary cap to be a point of contention in negotiations between the player’s union and the MLB regardless of how the rest of the playoffs unfolds.
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2025-10-16T12:43:53Z