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MLB 2026: The dying of the light

ticapnews said:
So with a lockout looming after the World Series, MLB is threatened by the popularity of the Savannah Bananas and their network of opponents. These aren't boring baseball games that stretch on endlessly. They track minutes per inning just as closely as ERA. These are talented entertainers (some former pros) who put on quite a show. They are like the Harlem Globetrotters - they even keep track of their success rates doing tricks. If games are missed (and some experts think the entire 2027 MLB season could be lost) the Bananas just might be a viable alternative for baseball fans.
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Went to one of the games in Des Moines last year.

It was entertaining, but it wasn't baseball. As a travelling road show with inherent social media buzz, it will continue to sell well. But it won't sell 40,000 tickets 81 times per year in 30 different cities.
 
Figured out what's up with the Giants. Instead of looking conspicuous and tanking the end of the season like the NBA they're tanking the begining of the season, and probably the whole season, to get the first pick in the draft.
 
Weather messed with the Big Ten Tournament in Omaha. USC-Michigan State started at 9am and rain caused that game not to end until 1:30. Then more rain came so the second quarterfinal between Purdue and UCLA didn't start until 7pm. They moved one quarterfinal until today, but still decided to keep Michigan-Nebraska last night, so they didn't have first pitch until 11pm and ended just short of 2am.
 
unofan said:
Went to one of the games in Des Moines last year.

It was entertaining, but it wasn't baseball. As a travelling road show with inherent social media buzz, it will continue to sell well. But it won't sell 40,000 tickets 81 times per year in 30 different cities.
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It doesn't have to. It just has to make people not miss baseball. That might not be difficult.

MLB has proposed a cap and floor

Cap: $245.3
Floor: $171.2

Based on 2026 opening day figures, eight teams would have to cut payroll to get under the cap. The teams over are the two-time reigning World Series champion Dodgers, New York Mets ($379.2 million), New York Yankees ($339.6 million), Toronto ($319.5 million), Philadelphia ($315.2 million), Boston ($263.7 million), San Diego ($260.1 million) and Atlanta ($247.9 million).

Twelve teams would be required to increase payroll by a total of $617 million based on 2026 numbers: Miami ($81.8 million), Cleveland ($95.7 million), Tampa Bay ($108.2 million), the Chicago White Sox ($108.6 million), St. Louis ($114.4 million), Washington ($119.1 million), Pittsburgh ($122.6 million), Minnesota ($125.6 million), Milwaukee ($130.9 million), the Athletics ($139.2 million), Colorado ($142.2 million) and Cincinnati ($148.8 million).
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When reached for comment, one owner said, "If this passes I'm gonna have to start feeding Cha-Cha real dog food."
 
A salary cap is generally seen as a Bad Idea ™️ in union circles, but when coupled with a salary floor it would mean a huge salary increase for the vast majority of players and only a relative handful of players who will be capped. I seriously question the unity of the owners on this though. Are the owners in Miami, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and ̶O̶a̶k̶l̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶S̶a̶c̶r̶a̶m̶e̶n̶t̶o̶ Las Vegas really going to want to take that sweet, sweet revenue they've been pocketing and spend it on players?
 
Apparently the cap and floor come with a collective media deal so the deadbeat owners will have better revenue to milk. Not sure how the Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers agree to this.
 
Bronco said:
Apparently the cap and floor come with a collective media deal so the deadbeat owners will have better revenue to milk. Not sure how the Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers agree to this.
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Presumably they have if it was presented, right?

This feels like it could be the first step towards ending local blackouts, but I believe the NBA has a similar collective media deal and they still have them, so I guess that’s not a certainty.
 
Spartanforlife4 said:
Presumably they have if it was presented, right?

This feels like it could be the first step towards ending local blackouts, but I believe the NBA has a similar collective media deal and they still have them, so I guess that’s not a certainty.
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I guess they could have agreed already, but surely they know the PA is not going to agree. Agreeing to something that would never happen is easy.

Edit: I would love the end of blackouts, ofc.
 
Bronco said:
I guess they could have agreed already, but surely they know the PA is not going to agree. Agreeing to something that would never happen is easy.

Edit: I would love the end of blackouts, ofc.
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This is a good point. Also, let’s not forget owners like the Pohlads that wouldn’t like this either. Forced to put another $80M into the pot.
 
Bronco said:
I guess they could have agreed already, but surely they know the PA is not going to agree. Agreeing to something that would never happen is easy.

Edit: I would love the end of blackouts, ofc.
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This. The players aren’t going to agree to a salary cap in any circumstance.
 
That’s fine. They can keep playing in increasingly empty stadiums and compete to be on one of four or five teams that still has anyone paying attention.

To be clear - I am happier for the owners to suffer this.
 
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