Why Teams Are 'Afraid' Of Steve Cohen And The Mets
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It's no secret that one of the major sticking points in labor negotiations between MLB and MLBPA has been the competitive balance tax.
The union is asking for CBT to rise from $210 million to $238 million, and then increase each year until the deal expires in 2026. So far, MLB has only been willing to go as high as $228 million for this season.
There has also been plenty of push back from a number of owners about increasing CBT, which has led to speculation that other clubs are worried about Mets owner Steve Cohen, who is worth $15 billion, significantly outspending them.
Cohen and the Mets were one of the most active teams in free agency back in November, before the lockout was imposed. The Mets' current luxury tax payroll is sitting at $271 million, and they aren't expected to be finished once transactions resume. New York still has a number of holes to fill on their roster, which is why they are destined to become the first club to exceed the $300 million payroll-mark.
Former MLBPA chief operating officer Gene Orza, who helped negotiate and establish MLB's CBT in the 1996 CBA, acknowledged Cohen's deep pockets as a factor during talks.
“I’m sure clubs are afraid of Steve Cohen,” Orza told Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. “If we lose some restraints on salary, the Mets will spend $300 million or something like that. You always have that small-market, big-market battle. He has to be sensitive to that.”
CBT has been used as a loose salary cap, which has brought fines and the loss of draft picks for exceeding Its limit. In most cases, big-market clubs see these penalties as minimal. But It's not supposed to be a salary cap, and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred doesn't believe it has operated in that manner.
“Gene is certainly correct that the competitive-balance tax thresholds were not intended to operate as a cap. And I do not believe that they have,” Manfred told The Athletic.
The player's union believes CBT should rise in comparison with the league's significant year-to-year growth in revenue from ticket prices, merchandise and television/streaming deals. However, Rosenthal pointed out that thresholds rising in accordance to revenue has never been mentioned in previous CBA negotiations.
The owners have also repeatedly brought up the losses they suffered as a result of the pandemic-shortened 60-game season in 2020, where fans weren't allowed in the ballpark.
So, as of today (Tuesday), MLB has presented several proposals to the union. Although the league already cancelled games, they are said to be willing to make them up in order to play a 162-game season in 2022. That is, as long as both sides can reach an agreement by later today. If not, MLB is threatening to cancel an additional week of games and not pay players their full salaries this year.
The Mets stayed under the luxury tax in Cohen's first season as majority owner of the franchise in 2021. Although they held onto first place in the National League East for 103 days, they still finished the campaign with a losing record.
This led to the hiring of general manager Billy Eppler, who Cohen gave the green light to spend $254.5 million on free agents: Max Scherzer, Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar and Mark Canha. The Mets also hired veteran manager Buck Showalter in December, which signaled they are in win-now mode. As long as the CBT rises, and penalties remain minuscule, Cohen will continue to spend "whatever it takes to win." That's why other teams are afraid of Cohen and the Mets.
