Cleveland isn’t the underdog you assume it’s. The Guardians are gaming the system — and it’s time we cease cheering them for it.
In Recreation 1 of the Guardians-Yankees American League Championship Collection on Monday night time, a lot of the dialog will concentrate on payrolls. The New York Mets, Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers sit comfortably amongst MLB’s top-five spenders this season, whereas the Cleveland Guardians rank twenty third, according to Spotrac. The Dodgers and Mets are additionally within the league-championship spherical of the playoffs.
The prevailing narrative for years is that Cleveland and different small-market groups succeed by doing extra with much less, nevertheless it’s time we rethink that storyline.
Within the early 2000s, the Oakland A’s — and, extra not too long ago, the Tampa Bay Rays — had been celebrated for constructing contenders on comparatively meager budgets. However neither of those groups has received a championship, and the dearth of roster depth at all times caught up with them when it mattered most.
Cleveland’s entrance workplace has mastered the artwork of constructing a aggressive group inside a good price range, nevertheless it’s not a hit story value celebrating anymore. Third baseman Jose Ramirez is the Guardians’ highest-paid participant this season, earning $17M — a determine that might tie for simply the seventh-highest salary on the Yankees.
This isn’t new.
Former Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia — who was traded by Cleveland in 2008 to Milwaukee earlier than hitting free company after that season — mentioned on “The 6-1-1 Podcast” throughout the summer season that he knew 2007 was his greatest shot at a title in Cleveland as a result of the group wasn’t going to pay to maintain its core intact. Together with Sabathia, Cleveland dealt catcher Victor Martinez and pitcher Cliff Lee earlier than their contracts expired.
What’s worse, Cleveland is working inside a system that enables small-market groups to spend minimally whereas nonetheless profiting.
MLB’s Competitive Balance Tax (CBT) is meant to punish large-market groups, such because the Dodgers or Yankees, for overspending, with that tax cash trickling right down to smaller-market golf equipment comparable to Cleveland.
However right here’s the issue: It’s not resulting in extra spending by these smaller groups. As an alternative, a lot of them — together with Cleveland — select to remain “small,” pocket the money and let big-market groups pay for his or her lack of funding.
The Pittsburgh Pirates stands out as the most egregious abuser of the system. In 2010, the Associated Press reported the Pirates made almost $29.4M in 2007 and 2008 regardless of enduring their seventeenth and 18th consecutive shedding seasons.
“The numbers point out why persons are suspecting they’re taking cash from baseball and conserving it — they don’t spend it on the gamers,” David Berri, president of the North American Affiliation of Sports activities Economists, mentioned then.
By then, the Pirates had baseball’s lowest opening-day payroll at $34.9M — simply $2M greater than in 1992, their final successful season on the time.
Fourteen years later, little has modified. Since that report, Pittsburgh has endured 11 shedding seasons and ranked twenty ninth in payroll amongst MLB’s 30 groups in 2024. Possession is not being penalized for not successful, and so long as earnings proceed, there’s no incentive to alter.
This technique isn’t working, and it’s time for MLB to step up. Extra aggressive luxurious tax penalties received’t repair the issue. As an alternative, small-market groups want a wage flooring.
MLB ought to require groups, such because the Guardians, to spend inside 10% of the luxurious tax ($213.3M for 2024) threshold to pressure them into being actually aggressive. A wage flooring would maintain house owners accountable for investing within the on-field product. It could additionally pressure groups to make strategic selections about whether or not to go all-in for a commerce deadline acquisition, figuring out it’d imply crossing the edge and paying a tax.
Cleveland’s present payroll is simply above $106M, far under the $237M CBT threshold. In the meantime, MLB revenue reached an all-time high in 2023, with a median of $378M per group.
There isn’t any legitimate excuse for small-market groups to cry poverty whereas sitting on mountains of money.
If baseball needs sustained development and true aggressive stability, it should maintain small-market groups accountable for spending and constructing rosters that may compete past the common season. Parity is barely a part of the equation — funding in expertise and depth is the lacking piece.
The Guardians aren’t the scrappy underdog they’re made out to be, and the baseball media should cease treating them as such. As an alternative, it’s time to shine a highlight on the broader difficulty: MLB’s lack of accountability for small-market groups.
Till they’re required to spend money on their gamers and cease profiting off the success of larger markets, the aggressive imbalance will persist.
