Monday, January 12, 2015

Most Popular Article of the Week: Would a Salary Cap Actually Help the Yankees?


No, seriously. Would a salary cap instituted in Major League Baseball actually help the New York Yankees? I say yes, why not? With a cap on spending you would also have to see a salary floor which would also help New York in a huge way, the removal of the luxury tax threshold. With so many teams, maybe not so much in the last few seasons, spending barely more or sometimes less than what the team is receiving in luxury tax and pocketing every merchandise sale, television deal, ticket sale etc. it makes the game more of a business and less of the game that we all know and love. With all the money in the game now with television deals and attendance on the up and up a salary cap may be at least discussed when the new collective bargaining agreement expires in 2016.

Most Yankees fans think that a cap would hurt the Yankees because it takes away our biggest asset, our ability to out-spend everyone, but I don't think that's so much the case anymore. The Dodgers are already out-spending the Yankees by a large margin while teams are passing the luxury tax threshold every single season. The new CBA has already restricted the Yankees ability to throw money around in the draft and now in the International market and honestly a cap would only help.

It's a well known fact that the rumors and hot stove season can be annoying if you're a Yankees fan. New York could have three Albert Pujols' in his prime playing first base, backing up and playing DH but if a fourth came up on the free agent market the Yankees would be "interested." The Yankees aren't interested our name and monikers are thrown around to simply drive the price up. With a cap no longer could teams do that and no longer could agents like Scott Boras give the team "the last call" to squeeze a few million out of owners and teams. With a cap if a Max Scherzer wanted $30 million a season and the Yankees had $15 million to spend it would really help the fans and these teams see through the bull crap and see the real rumors and interest.

Also, believe it or not, there are still players around Major League Baseball that actually want to be Yankees. There are still MLB players and veterans that want a chance to play for a World Series before they retire. Much like you see in the NBA a lot the Yankees could use this to their advantage while they maneuver around the cap. If New York has around $10 million to spend on the cap and a couple of key and productive veterans want to come over to chase a ring they could/would sign for exponentially less for the opportunity to play in October. The same could be said for players like Troy Tulowitzki who wants to be a Yankee if he were a free agent, if he is asking for $30 million and the Yankees only have $20 million he would be more inclined to take a discount or a back loaded contract to fulfill his dream and fill the shoes of Derek Jeter.

Many fans around the league want a salary cap and if it happens, as a Yankees fan, I say bring it on. This is only going to help the Yankees and their aura and tradition may give them the step up above the league that they once had and have lost in recent seasons. There can't be anything wrong with that.

1 comment:

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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)