The 2026 MLB season starts this Wednesday night, and to say I'm excited would be an understatement. I literally just reserved our conference room at work for the first hour of the Brewers opener before I started typing this post. It's also not hyperbole to say that my excitement is magnified a bit this year because it might be our last normal Opening Day for awhile. Pundits, fans, and teams alike are bracing for what is very likely to be another lockout at the conclusion of this season. There was a lockout at the end of the last CBA in 2021 that did not end up impacting any games and merely delayed the start of the 2022 season by about a week, but experts (and myself) believe that this coming lockout will not be as kind. Generally speaking, the players' union has caved in the last couple rounds of negotiations and are set to dig in their heels this time around. The most amazing thing to me is not really the impending lockout itself, but the fact that there seems to be zero sense of urgency. Neither side seems interested in meeting to hash things out until the 11th hour, and Tony Clark even stepped down as MLBPA Director last month amidst a nepotism scandal. So not only are the players going into these negotiations flat-footed to begin with, but now with the added curveball of new representation in Bruce Meyer. The major issue on the table this time around will be salary control - namely, players want to see a salary floor, and owners want to see a salary cap. Major League Baseball is famously the only major sport that does not have a salary cap, and teams with bottomless pockets like the Dodgers and Mets have continued to exploit that system and throw out their luxury tax fees like toilet paper. The Dodgers are looking to become the first team to three-peat since the 1998-2000 Yankees - another infamously wealthy franchise - with a payroll in excess of $400M. Those opposed to a salary cap would point to the fact that teams like the Brewers, Rays, and Guardians are perennially competitive with payrolls nearly one-quarter of the Dodgers, or that there is increasing parity in the expanded playoffs, or even that money does not guarantee success, aka the Mets. There are also arguments to be made from other sports with salary caps that a cap does not ensure competitive balance. But I think everyone can agree that it's getting a little out of control and there needs to be some way to reign it in. I think a salary floor coupled with limits on deferred money and years of player control would be a start for negotiations, but I'm not in the room, and to my earlier point I have no idea what the discussions are because they're not public, if they're even happening at all. In my mind, the far greater concerns are teams tanking and the oodles of deferred money rather than a true salary cap, and I hope those issues both get addressed. The Shohei Ohtani contract with $680M of a $700M contract deferred was the moment that broke everyone's brain and was a real moment of clarity that something needs to be done before the Dodgers just start buying every single World Series (to be fair, Ohtani has won 2 MVPs in 2 years as a Dodger and is inarguably one of the greatest players of all time). The potential for a lockout is already affecting our ball trip considerations for 2027, so we'll be keeping a close eye on this.
The lockout is a backburner issue to many and something we can pretend doesn't exist during the season. As for major news happening right now, the ABS (Automatic Ball-Strike) System is going to get the lion's share of the headlines both on and off the field. This is a system that allows either the batter, catcher, or pitcher to tap their head to challenge the outcome of any pitch using an elaborate pitch tracking system tailored to everyone's individual height. Unlike the replays of a play on the field which requires umpires huddling up for what is sometimes 5+ minutes, the ball-strike reviews happen nearly instantaneously and do not hold up the game for more than a few seconds. This system has been used at various levels of the minor leagues for years to rave reviews and has been rolled out during Spring Training this year. Purists will hate it, but I think it is great for the game. You want the most important calls of the game to be correct, and ultimately that is what I think this will affect. There are limits to challenges, so you're not going to see every single borderline pitch challenged; it will most likely be egregiously bad calls or pitches that determine the outcome of an at-bat, like a called 3rd strike or 4th ball. The main reason I like ABS is it is going to truly enforce a strike zone that has never really been wholly enforced. Elite hitters, elite pitchers, and elite pitch-framing catchers are no longer going to get the benefit of the doubt by their stature alone, and it should in theory level the playing field. Speaking of stature, the tallest and shortest players are the most likely to be impacted by this, so be sure to take note of all the extra walks Jose Altuve and Aaron Judge are drawing this year.
There's also a third story that is not garnering much attention right now, but I think will have a profound impact on the sport in the next 5-10 years, and that is the constant flux of RSNs (Regional Sports Networks) and national broadcast rights. FanDuel is pretty much belly-up at this point and a number of additional teams have been picked up by MLB.TV in 2026, including the Brewers. This now brings the total number of teams with MLB-controlled telecasts to at least 14, with potentially more on the way. MLB-controlled telecasts might mean more continuity and access for the viewers, but they will also mean far more money for MLB and far less money for the individual teams, particularly teams like the Angels that previously relied on lucrative local media contracts. I think this RSN debacle will finally push Arte Moreno to build a new stadium and then sell the team - something that should have happened a long time ago. Some teams like the Cubs and Braves are taking matters into their own hands and starting their own TV networks, but I think in time that is going to prove to be an antiquated model. The ultimate goal of MLB is clearly to keep as much under their roof as possible so that they can push as much content to streaming platforms and national television as possible, in an era where more and more people are "cutting the cord." Is this a cash grab? Will this be a pain in the ass? Absolutely to both. But if this means that at some point down the line we potentially don't have to deal with all of the ridiculous territorial blackouts anymore, then I'm all for it. If you think the way we consume baseball has changed a lot in the last decade, then just wait until you see the next decade. Network cable is dying and the average age of a baseball fan rises every year, so something needs to change dramatically to reach new audiences, and we're seeing the inception of that under Commissioner Manfred. Global marketing factors into all of this as well, which is why I am not counting out Montreal or Mexico as a site for a future expansion team.
On a personal note, I have no money riding on any team this year, so I am only rooting for my usual Brewers and Twins in 2026. And by that I mean the Brewers, since the Twins will be laughable and their games are blacked out for me anyways. Three days until Opening Day!!!
touch with baseball when his childhood heroes Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, and Jim Gantner retired but the Great Home Run Chase of 1998 reignited his passion. As a student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Erik became involved with the campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity. With this group Erik traveled to Portland, OR and Baltimore, MD to work on construction projects and help the group raise $25,000 to partially sponsor a house in Milwaukee. Also at UWM, Erik met Peter Nagel. The two attended their first Brewers game together during Opening Weekend 2003. Despite their failure to ignite the coals at their first tailgate, the two had a blast and were soon making weekly trips to the ballpark. Erik has gone on to several colleges and changed careers several times, and has moved all the way out to New Hampshire, but has always stayed true to his baseball roots by holding part-time stadium usher jobs. To this day he looks back fondly on his incredible cross-country journey.
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