'Do you burn $100 million to those kids?' Dodgers and Mets are rushing → Team owners are outraged. "We will introduce salary cap no matter what!"

*This content was translated by AI.

Ahead of the 2026 season, the result of the virtually unprecedented "war of Japan" was disastrous. Multiple Major League Baseball owners were angry when big-name FA (free agent) players signed contracts for more than they evaluated. The voices of Kyle Tucker (29) to the LA Dodgers and Bobissett (28) to the New York Mets have become louder.

The Athletic, a U.S. sports media outlet, said on the 21st (Korea time), "Multiple major league owners are outraged by Tucker's contract with the Dodgers. The contract made the introduction of an annual salary cap 100%. Bissett's trip to the New York Mets for more than $100 million also made owners uncomfortable. The Dodgers and the Mets will be the only teams that oppose such a move, he said, citing a source. A Major League Baseball official reportedly declined to comment on the report.

According to the report, the origin of the incident is due to two recently announced large contracts. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the "World Series defending champion" who already has the highest annual salary in the Major League, signed a contract worth a total of $240 million (about 355.3 billion won) with a four-year Tucker on the 16th. Even the details are player-friendly. Two years later and three years later, it is known that the opt-out clause is included, and the annual average (AAV) is as much as $60 million. This is the highest amount in the Major League.

In addition, the New York Mets joined the team. The Mets, who competed to recruit Tucker until the end, gave Bissett a huge $126 million (about KRW 186.4 billion) over the three-year contract period and went on a "delight shopping." It is said that the reaction of other owners who watched this was "alarming" itself.

It is pointed out that the recent gap in total salary between teams has eventually exceeded the threshold. According to the report, the Dodgers' expected payroll in the 2026 season is expected to exceed $400 million (about 530 billion won), while small market teams such as the Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays are expected to set less than $100 million in total annual salary. The number of teams estimated to exceed $300 million is about the Toronto Blue Jays, including the Dodgers, and the New York Mets.

The owners argue that the gap reduces the league's competitiveness and undermines the value of the clubs. They will discuss specific "ceiling" and "floor spending" at the owner's meeting in February. Analysts say that there is also a business calculation that the value of all clubs will increase immediately if the salary cap is introduced.

Of course, the players are protesting. Tony Clark, general secretary of the players' union (MLBPA), immediately issued a statement and strongly protested, saying, "It is natural for clubs that invest without excuses to win," adding, "Salary caps are nothing but collusion that violates the rights and interests of players."

Scott Boras, a "big agent," also said, "The Dodgers' huge spending is a legitimate investment based on a special source of revenue called Shohei Ohtani. The Dodgers even generated big profits in a short period of time due to huge investments," he said, blaming some owners for the system.

Eventually, the current labor-management agreement (CBA) is scheduled to expire in December after the end of the season. While the owners' positions to push for the introduction of salary caps and the players' opposition are likely to clash head-on, in the worst case, scenarios such as "lockout" and "league suspension" are being discussed ahead of the 2027 season.

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*This content was translated by AI.