Dave Roberts Says Dodgers Will 'Dominate' Whether MLB Has Salary Cap or Not
Dave Roberts isn't concerned about the possibility of a salary cap in baseball down the line.
"I just think we have an organization that whatever the rules and constrictions are, we're going to dominate," the Los Angeles Dodgers manager told reporters Monday.
The Dodgers won their second straight World Series this past season and had the highest payroll in the league. They used that payroll to stack the roster with plenty of superstars, and they are likely the team to beat heading into the 2026 campaign as well.
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Yet their high-spending ways in a league without a salary cap highlight a potential looming labor issue for the league and its players association. The current collective bargaining agreement expires ahead of the 2027 campaign, and the possibility of a salary cap figures to be a major topic of discussion.
"The crumbling of the regional sports network (RSN) television model, which led to several teams losing out on local media revenue, has brought that topic to the forefront in recent years," ESPN's Alden Gonzalez explained. "And the unmitigated spending of teams like the Dodgers and New York Mets has only exacerbated the anger from owners throughout the industry, who continue to claim they don't have the revenues to keep up."
While a salary cap would undercut one of the ways the Dodgers have established themselves as the league's most dominant team, Roberts' comments suggest he believes the organization will still remain on top if one was installed.
And it is hard to argue with him.
Signing free agents may generate the most headlines, but the Dodgers also had the top-ranked farm system in the league on MLB.com's midseason rankings in 2025. They are loaded with young talent ready to make an impact whenever needed in the future.
That young talent would become all the more important with a salary cap in place preventing the front office from stacking the team with the top free agents, but Los Angeles seemed to be prepared for that reality as well.
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