Major League Baseball is set for an explosive labor war after the 2026 season, with a Dec. 1 work stoppage looking more and more likely with each passing week.
In recent days, the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers have faced a new round of criticism for "ruining baseball" after signing top free agent Kyle Tucker to a deal that will pay him $60 million per season and take the team's competitive balance tax payroll CBT above $400 million.
With tensions already high heading into 2026, the furor and jealousy surrounding the Dodgers' latest big-money move may embolden MLB owners – many of whom decline to invest in the on-field product – to dig their heels in even further in a push to institute a salary cap.
Unlike the NFL or NBA, MLB has never had a hard cap. It's something the league and owners have always wanted, but the idea is historically dead on arrival with the players association. MLBPA executive director Tony Clark said last year that a salary cap would be further "institutionalized collusion" that suppresses player wages.
Here's what some of the biggest names in baseball have said in recent years about a potential salary cap:
