The Los Angeles Dodgers dominated the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLCS, winning in a four-game sweep and outscoring their opponent 15-4. The Brewers had the best record in the National League and MLB this year despite an inferior payroll to LA. The Dodgers – thanks to a stockpile of deferred money and a league-leading $350 million payroll in 2025 – saved their best for last. Another World Series title could be on the way, as the Dodgers will surely be favored no matter who they face next week. The Mariners and Blue Jays of the AL, both talented teams, will have to play the role of giant slayer to stop what could be a dynasty in the making.
MLB has championed its parity in the last decade, but despite the unpredictability of baseball itself, the end result of each season can be driven by financial prowess. Sure, teams like the Brewers and Arizona Diamondbacks may sneak through the cracks every now and then, but the results overwhelmingly suggest that teams which spend the most, win the most. That doesn't always result in a World Series, but it does lead to consistency and, thus, even more revenue to spend on next year's team.
Following the Dodgers Game 4 victory in LA, Dave Roberts defiantly spoke to seemingly every rival fanbase.
“Let’s get four more wins and really ruin baseball," Roberts said, wearing MLB's villain arc proudly.
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Small-market owners will use Dave Roberts words against the Dodgers
For the record, I do not have a huge problem with MLB's luxury tax system in practice. A group of small-market owners, however, hope to leverage the Dodgers' recent success into a salary cap in the next round of CBA negotiations. That will be a non-starter for the MLBPA, and thus a long winter of negotiations in 2026 that could very well lead to a lockout.
"If it's the Dodgers, MLB owners -- who already were vocal publicly and even more so privately about Los Angeles spending as much as the bottom six teams in payroll combined this year -- will likely cry foul even louder. 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," Jeff Passan wrote in a column previewing labor negotiations just last week.
These small-market owners claim they don't have the same resources as the Dodgers – owned by Guggenheim Baseball Management – to succeed. Because the Dodgers reside in Los Angeles and have one of the best brands in baseball, their spending needs to be curbed more aggressively, they say. By pointing the finger, these small-market owners who could very well spend more on their own rosters rather than simply pocketing luxury tax and media money ever year, can avoid responsibility. The players aren't falling for it, but again, these small-market owners are willing to go to war over their reputation.
Is there any CBA solution on the horizon?
The easiest solution would be for these small-market but not small-pocketed owners to spend more money, but we all know that's not going to happen. I have long been a proponent of a salary floor, which would force these small-market owners to build more competitive MLB rosters, paired with a high cap or stricter luxury tax system that should help keep the Dodgers in check, while not hurting their own ability to use their hard-earned dollars on their on-field product. The Dodgers are what every MLB team should aspire to be. From the top-down, they are a model organization, as much as most fans root against them.
As I mentioned, do not expect the players to bend on a cap willingly unless their livelihood is at stake. The players' best argument against a cap would come if a team like the Brewers were to knock off said Dodgers, proving that money can't guarantee a World Series appearance. It still doesn't, but the harsh truth is LA's spending habits make it a whole lot easier when their competition is either incompetently run, or doesn't match them dollar for dollar.