International Spending Trend Showing Its Ugly Head

The New York Yankees flexed their financial muscle once again last year in the International free agent market spending anywhere from $18.1 million to $30 million depending on who you’re reading and who you’re asking which may be the beginning of a new trend in Major League Baseball. The Yankees brass felt that this was the best group of amateur free agents that the league has seen in a long, long time and will see for a long time so the Yankees blew past their international spending cap and will face harsh restrictions that include not being able to sign an IFA for more than $300K for each of the next two signing periods. Was it worth it and is this the beginning of a trend in Major League Baseball that may be addressed with the new Collective Bargaining Agreement when the current one expires after the 2016 season? Probably, yes.

Believe it or not it is not just the Yankees doing it, the Boston Red sox spent more than $38 million, the Arizona Diamondbacks spent over $10 million and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim came in around $9.7 million this past signing period. The Texas Rangers and the Chicago Cubs are coming off their two year ban and financial restrictions from doing the same in the 2012-2013 signing period and both are expected to blow past their signing allotments in 2015-2016 once again. The Los Angeles Dodgers are already over their spending allotment for 2015-2016 after handing out a $16 million contract to Cuban RHP Yadier Alvarez and the number of dollars shelled out is on a steady climb up every season.

From the beginning of the 2014-2015 signing period until the All-Star break 2015 teams have shelled out $160 million to 801 international free agents and the signing period for this year has just begun. All told thirteen teams went over their allotted pools in 2014-2015 resulting in $71.5 million in tax and if the trend continues it will be likely that all thirteen teams will go over again once their restrictions end on July 2^nd, 2017.