Brewers Advance to Set Up Historic Low-Budget Showdown
The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night to secure their place in the World Series, setting up a matchup between two of Major League Baseball's smallest spenders. The series marks the first time since 1991 that two clubs from the bottom half of MLB payrolls will compete for the championship.
The upcoming Fall Classic is scheduled to begin Oct. 23, with Milwaukee facing either the Cleveland Guardians or the Tampa Bay Rays. Both potential opponents rank among the league's lowest-spending franchises this season.
As of Aug. 31, Milwaukee held MLB’s 19th-highest payroll, while Tampa Bay ranked 25th and Cleveland sat at 30th. This places both the Brewers and their potential AL opponents in the lower half of player spending relative to the rest of the league.
The financial disparity between the participants and other high-spending clubs is stark. The Dodgers, New York Mets, and New York Yankees each have payrolls this season that cost more than the combined rosters of the Brewers, Guardians, and Rays.
Opening-day payrolls highlight the gap in resources. The Mets topped the league at $358.4 million, followed by the Dodgers at $323.3 million and the Yankees at $302.8 million. In contrast, the Brewers’ opening-day payroll was $125.9 million, the Rays’ was $90.5 million, and the Guardians’ was $75.5 million.
Market Size and Historical Precedents
The financial constraints of these clubs are reflected in their market sizes. Milwaukee ranks as MLB’s 30th and smallest Designated Market Area, while Cleveland is 22nd and Tampa Bay is 15th.
If the Guardians win the AL pennant, it would mark the first World Series involving two teams in the bottom half of MLB cities by DMA since St. Louis beat Detroit in 2006.
The last time both pennant winners were among the bottom 50% in player spending was when the Minnesota Twins beat the Atlanta Braves for the 1991 championship. No small-market team has won the World Series since Kansas City in 2015.
Since the 1991 Twins, the only World Series winners with bottom-half payrolls have been the 2002 Anaheim Angels, 2003 Florida Marlins, and 2017 Houston Astros.
The Parity Debate and Future Lockout Threats
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred stated at the All-Star Game in July that there is a strong relationship between who gets into the playoffs and who proceeds, arguing exceptions do not reflect parity. Manfred maintained that spending big increases the odds of success, noting that larger-market teams have a dramatically higher opportunity to make the playoffs and proceed to subsequent rounds.
However, players’ association head Bruce Meyer stated at the All-Star Game that owners have resources to compete and that player proposals include provisions to reward teams that actually do compete.
The low-budget World Series showdown will start six weeks before a likely management lockout threatening the 2027 season due to battles over the lack of a salary cap. MLB owners have proposed a salary cap with a floor, a system players say they will never accept, with a lockout likely to start Dec. 1.
Agent Scott Boras stated that while probabilities of winning are increased with greater talent, talent has many variables regarding performance.
The tension between market size and competitive balance echoes past labor disputes. Three years after the Twins won the 1991 title, players went on strike as owners pushed for a salary cap, leading to the cancellation of the World Series.