A Delayed Salary Cap Could Help Angels Rebuild

The Los Angeles Angels are up against it when it comes to the timing of the lockout and their ownership change, and there are all kinds of ramifications associated with this. 

There were reports this week that the owners vote ratifying the sale of the Angels to new owner Stan Kroenke and his KSE sports group could happen in mid-November, but a lot of the projections from those reports seem to have been walked back or changed  considerably. 

That puts the Angels back in limbo, but there’s a small possibility that this might not be as bad as it seems. The owners’ latest proposal in the labor stalemate has them raising the cap and associated floor by a small amount, then delaying the ratifying date to 2028 so that teams can “adjust.” 

The odds of this being accepted are miniscule at this point, but they are worth discussing. It would completely change the Angels situation, as they currently have very little money committed for next season and a deep-pockets owner coming in. 

That would give the Angels time to get their new leadership in place, come up with a plan and start making moves. They’d be even or possibly slightly ahead of the competition in this scenario, and as a result it could accelerate their timeline to become contenders. 

So why is this worth discussing if the odds of it are that small? The owners’ proposal is just the opening salvo in what's going to be an endless sequence of back and forth, and it does indicate a strategy that could represent a possible tipping point in all this. 

No one wants a lockout right now. Baseball is coming off an intriguing World Series between two small-market teams, and while it was a short series, it did show that that approach is viable.  

The players association shot down the possibility quicker than you can say “no chance,” but that’s close to meaningless right now. The players see no need for a cap, although they might support a salary floor, and they’ll continue to cling to that position for as long as it looks like it’s going to work. 

The definition of “work” is fungible right now. The two sides hate each other, and right now they’re willing to go to the mat to keep that hatred alive, regardless of how many millions or billions of dollars it costs. But it is something to watch for the Halos, who are going to change completely as soon as we get a better timeline for when that might happen.