https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7670102/2026/10/07/mlb-memo-lockout-plans-teams-players-ban-contact/?campaign=20273361&source=athletic_breaking_targeted_email&userId=602876

https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-mlbpa-proposal-154-game-schedule-new-playoff-structure

https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2026/10/08/white-sox-focused-on-alds-not-most-recent-cba-proposal

Now that the Sox season is over, I really have to wonder when we'll see them in action again. Counting down the number of days until pitchers and catchers report is going to have to be put on hold.

Story at CBS Sportsline caught my eye today. The Orioles owner in an interview with a Baltimore media outlet made a statement that I'm guessing will raise a few eyebrows.

He said his baseball owner friends are making more money than he did when he was in private equity.

On 10/17/2026 at 12:49 AM, Lip Man 1 said:

Story at CBS Sportsline caught my eye today. The Orioles owner in an interview with a Baltimore media outlet made a statement that I'm guessing will raise a few eyebrows.

He said his baseball owner friends are making more money than he did when he was in private equity.

"Lots of people want to be owners and lots of people don't realize how hard it is to be an owner. I keep telling people, it's not as easy as I thought," he said.

"The owners care more about winning than making money. They're not against making money. Of course, they don't want to lose money. The obsession with winning and beating your competitors is really what drives these people who own these teams. There's nothing as satisfying as winning a championship."

but Rubinstein also said this

Ofc he's in the AL East too

Some interesting stories today.

CBS SportsLine has a detailed look at the basic issues surrounding the upcoming labor situation:

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-lockout-logistics-cba-negotiations-free-agency-2027-season/

And for those who get The Athletic there are two stories that contrast opposing points of view in the situation.

"Bud" Selig is asked his thoughts on things and he says MLB needs a salary cap.

but writer Jayson Stark has a story that says of the four major professional sports in North America, MLB has the most parity and has the numbers behind it.

Then you have this comment for MLB reporter Ken Rosenthal doubling down on something he wrote months ago:

"I’ll say it again: Payroll disparity is a legitimate concern. The labor agreement should be adjusted to put small-market teams on a more level economic playing field. But this bears repeating, too: The coming labor Armageddon is much more about the owners’ desire to raise their franchise values than it is about competitive balance."

7 hours ago, Lip Man 1 said:

Some interesting stories today.

CBS SportsLine has a detailed look at the basic issues surrounding the upcoming labor situation:

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-lockout-logistics-cba-negotiations-free-agency-2027-season/

And for those who get The Athletic there are two stories that contrast opposing points of view in the situation.

"Bud" Selig is asked his thoughts on things and he says MLB needs a salary cap.

but writer Jayson Stark has a story that says of the four major professional sports in North America, MLB has the most parity and has the numbers behind it.

Then you have this comment for MLB reporter Ken Rosenthal doubling down on something he wrote months ago:

"I’ll say it again: Payroll disparity is a legitimate concern. The labor agreement should be adjusted to put small-market teams on a more level economic playing field. But this bears repeating, too: The coming labor Armageddon is much more about the owners’ desire to raise their franchise values than it is about competitive balance."

Cost input/labor rate certainty

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/10/25/world-series-bud-selig-salary-cap/

Bud Selig needs to shut up and go put his nose in the corner after how bad his tenure looks with some historic perspective. From contraction, to ignoring the steroid era, and not being able to fix the finances in baseball under his tenure, he needs to stfu.

https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/billion-dollar-reason-mlb-team-103000194.html

Still, the growth has paled in comparison with the way that team values have skyrocketed in the NFL (up 308% since 2016) and the NBA (352%) during the same decade, prompting a sense that baseball owners are leaving some money on the table. The average MLB team is also valued at seven times annual revenues, much lower than the average multiple for the NFL (13.4x), the NBA (13.1x), the NHL (8.9x) or MLS (8.9x), indicating that investors are less optimistic about future growth in baseball. If MLB teams could command a revenue multiple in line with their peers in hockey and soccer, it would translate to $800 million in additional value per franchise on average at 2025's revenue levels.

Of course, a salary cap isn't the only reason that other leagues have been better investments than MLB. The NFL and the NBA, for instance, both generate billions more in centralized media rights revenue that is distributed among their franchises each year, whereas MLB teams are more dependent on local TV deals, which have become less dependable after the collapse of the country's largest regional sports network operator, Main Street Sports Group.

Forbes

Edited 14 hours ago14 hr by caulfield12

I have to believe the NBA is at risk here given how hard it is to find any NBA game in any given night. But I digress.

”Still, it is not entirely a coincidence that clubs in European soccer leagues—which also lack a salary cap—have similarly lagged behind the NFL and the NBA with their revenue multiples and their appreciation. Investors are willing to pay a premium for cost certainty—the predictability that comes with a salary cap curbing how much they can expect to spend from year to year.”

16 minutes ago, Bananarchy said:

I have to believe the NBA is at risk here given how hard it is to find any NBA game in any given night. But I digress.

MLB

generally older fans/57 was the average age of those who consider baseball their favorite sport

that demographic doesn't spend as much, so lower advertising rates as well

RSN implosion mlb national contracts only worth $550 million, which didn't even increase in last negotiations

increasing inaccessibility for middle class due to travel ball costs for teens

NBA much bigger international footprint

rise of the WNBA, with 40% ownership stake by NBA

GS Valkyries already $1 billion plus

challenges with Chinese politics, lack of interest in India as well

LeBron James close to end Curry as well, young people around world can't identify as much with Wembayana as a Leo Messi or Rick Brunson

https://www.forbes.com/sites/hanktucker/2026/10/29/the-billion-dollar-reason-mlb-team-owners-are-willing-to-risk-a-lockout/

Forbes is now protecting an average $1 billion per team franchise valuation increase with a hard cap

No shock that JR wanted to hold on until 2029 at least...jump from $1.8 billion to $2.8 billion Sox valuation (plus control shares) puts another $600 million in the pockets of his family @ 60% team ownership (Ishbia brothers @ +/-40%).

Average MLB team jumps to $3.9 billion

NBA to $6.13 billion

NFL franchises to $9.53 billion

The stark valuation gap between the two leagues comes down to a few major structural differences. NBA franchises are worth roughly double MLB teams ($6.1 billion average vs. $2.6 billion average) primarily due to superior national media revenue, a global fan footprint, and the structural "payroll certainty" provided by the NBA's salary cap. [1, 2, 3]

While Major League Baseball clubs are still highly valuable assets, their financial architecture has stagnated compared to the rapid exponential growth of the NBA.

Edited 3 hours ago3 hr by caulfield12