Selig's Folly is dead. In 2002, Commissioner Selig's All-Star blunder (of teams running out of players) of making the exhibition game "count" in the playoffs is no longer the case. Back to the basics of sports, the team with the best record will have earned the advantage in the World Series. This makes every game important.
The change of the All-Star game ramifications is part of the new collective bargaining agreement. The new five year deal tweaks various aspects of the old deal. MLB.com reviewed the new changes:
The most surprising twist is that home-field advantage in the
World Series will no longer be tied to the All-Star Game, as first
reported by The Associated Press. Instead, the pennant winner with the
better regular-season record will get home-field advantage in the Fall
Classic.
Free-agent compensation
Specifics on Draft-pick compensation are still being discussed. That
said, qualifying offers -- which will still be calculated based on the
average of the top 125 salaries -- can still be extended to free agents,
but no more than once per player in his career. A player must still be
on his club for the entire season to receive a qualifying offer.
Teams losing a free agent who received a qualifying offer will get a
Draft pick only if the player signs a contract worth at least $50
million. After that, the pick depends on a team's market size, according
to MLB Network Insider Ken Rosenthal.
Beginning in the 2017-18 offseason, teams will not lose first-round
Draft picks for signing a premier free agent. However, teams exceeding
the luxury-tax threshold would lose a second-rounder, a fifth-rounder
and $1 million in international pool money.
If a club hasn't exceeded the luxury-tax threshold, it will lose a third-round pick.
Luxury tax threshold
Incremental increases from the current $189 million of 2014-16 to:
2017: $195 million
2018: $197 million
2019: $206 million
2020: $209 million
2021: $210 million
Tax rates for teams exceeding the threshold will rise from 17.5
percent to 20 percent for first-time instances, remain at 30 percent for
second instances and increase from 40 to 50 percent for third-time
instances.
There's a new 12 percent surtax for teams $20 million to $40 million
above the threshold, 40 percent for first instances more than $40
million above the threshold and 42.5 percent for teams $40 million above
the threshold a second time, according to The Associated Press.
International Draft
Rather than an international Draft, which owners had sought, the two
sides agreed to a bonus pool system, with a hard cap on how much each
team can spend. That pool is expected to be $5 million to $6 million per
team. Under the previous CBA, the bonus pools were scaled based on
record the previous year, with the worst teams getting a little more
than $5 million and the club with the best record getting a bonus pool
in the $2 million range. It was also a "soft" cap, meaning teams could
exceed it, but had to pay penalties for doing so.
Cuban-born players who are at least 25 years old, with six-plus years
of experience in Serie Nacional, will maintain exemption from the
international bonus pool, according to MLB.com's Jon Paul Morosi.
Roster size
No change. Teams will have 25-man rosters for the regular season,
expanding to 40 in September. An expansion to 26-man rosters for April
through August had been discussed in exchange for a smaller roster
expansion in September, but that did not materialize.
Disabled list
The minimum time for a trip to the DL will be reduced from 15 days to 10, according to The Associated Press.
Other items of note
• Beginning in 2018, the regular season will begin in mid-week to create additional off-days during the schedule.
• According to the New York Post, incoming Major Leaguers will be
banned from using smokeless tobacco, but current players will be
"grandfathered in" and still be permitted.
THE KEYS TO THE DEAL
1. The All Star league winner for home field advantage in World Series has been a thorn on many teams sides for years. The idea that the best team should have home field advantage during the playoffs makes the most sense and will have the biggest change in the new deal.
2. The shortening of the DL from 15 to 10 days will have operational consequences. First, it makes it easier to activate players with day to day soft tissue injuries. Second, it is a compromise between the concussion protocol and the old DL time frame. Third, it will add additional player travel cost moving players from minors to the majors. Fourth, it really gives starting pitchers a quicker avenue to get back to the big leagues (missing 2 starts instead of 3).
3. The free agent qualifying offer compensation is still a quagmire of exceptions. The new deal allows second tier free agents (normally players in their late thirties looking for a final 2-3 year deal) to reject a qualifying offer for a one year deal (for this year's amount of $17.2 million) in order to get a higher guaranteed sum in a 2 or 3 year deal below the $50 million threshold.
4. The owners lost out on an international draft, but gained additional funds for the large market teams to equalize with the small market clubs. The hard cap makes it harder for international free agents to big up their bonus demands. It also stops teams from spending Round 1 bonus dollars on foreign teenagers, which makes U.S. high school and college prospects more of a scouting priority.
