I've never been interested in the playoffs

[Ennder]

In the NBA and the NFL, the teams that succeed on a consistent basis do so because they are run better than the others--better coaching, better personnel moves, better scouting, etc.

 

This really isn't accurate though, if you think some teams don't have significant advantages in the NBA or NFL you are looking at those sports with rose colored glasses. This is a discussion that never goes anywhere useful though.

[Robideaux]

Sport A

Top 5

$201,449,289

$135,773,988

$135,050,000

$122,696,000

$115,085,000

 

Mean: $142,010,855

 

Bottom 5

$62,310,000

$59,328,000

$48,743,000

$42,796,700

$36,814,000

 

Mean: $49,998,340

 

Top 5 spends $2.84 for every $1.00 the bottom 5 spends on player salaries.

 

 

Sport B

Top 5

$91,377,313

$84,654,219

$84,220,991

$82,504,966

$80,532,126

 

Mean: $84,657,923

 

Bottom 5

$56,713,022

$56,292,253

$55,314,060

$49,887,530

$49,664,212

 

Mean: $53,574,215

 

Top 5 spends $1.58 for every $1.00 the bottom 5 spends on player salaries.

 

Sport C

Top 5

$144,023,940

$139,498,691

$131,809,525

$130,391,959

$128,673,885

 

Mean: $134,879,600

 

Bottom 5

$93,886,305

$92,245,719

$92,211,978

$91,935,090

$91,055,535

 

Mean: $92,266,925

 

Top 5 spends $1.46 for every $1.00 the bottom 5 spends on player salaries.

 

 

Which one is not like the others? Yes, sport A is baseball. The top 5 salaried MLB teams outspend the lowest 5 at an almost 3-to-1 ratio. The ratio in the NBA and NFL is closer to 1.5-to-1.

 

I never said that there were not discrepancies in the other sports. I said that the playing field was even enough that being smarter than your opponents in the NBA and NFL is generally going to bring success. I don't think that is true in baseball. Especially now that the rich teams have figured out how to turn the draft into a sham. I'm not saying we need a salary cap necessarily, but to deny that economics aren't more deterministic in MLB than the NBA or NFL seems contrarian simply for the sake of being contrarian.