All-Stars Push Back Against MLB’s Proposed Salary Cap

Major League Baseball owners have introduced a salary-cap plan that would limit 2027 team payrolls to $245.3 million (including a $20.1 million allocation for benefits and the pre-arbitration bonus pool) and set a payroll floor of $171.2 million. The cap would sharply reduce the New York Mets’ star Juan Soto—who signed a record $765 million, 15-year contract after the 2024 season—to a $265 million, six-year deal under the proposal. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the league’s highest spender, posted a $415.2 million Opening-Day payroll this year.

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The current collective-bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1, after which MLB is expected to lock out players. A decisive deadline arrives in late February or early March, when the league will announce whether Opening Day will be postponed. Bargaining began in May and is slated to resume after the All-Star break.

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred argues the cap is necessary to “lessen payroll disparity.” The league also proposes banning players from signing professional contracts until they are at least 20 years old and two years removed from high-school graduation, asserting that “college baseball provides a better development path.”

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All-Star representatives—including Paul Skenes, Juan Soto, Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, and Mason Miller—have uniformly rejected the cap, emphasizing the importance of unrestricted earning potential and the risk of a shortened 2027 season.

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• “Both sides kind of have their line that they're not going to cross,” — Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates ace, union negotiating committee member

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• “Whether that results in missing games or missing a season, we'll see.” — Paul Skenes

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• “It shouldn't be there.” — Juan Soto, New York Mets outfielder

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• “The opportunity for players to get paid is what this is all about," Harper said, citing the union's legacy of fighting MLB since Curt Flood helped unite players in the 1970s.” — Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies outfielder

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• “The place that the game's at right now, I think killing that momentum is kind of fruitless for everybody.” — Mason Miller, San Diego Padres closer

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