"51 players are making 50 percent of the money" - Reds HOFer makes feelings clear on the MLB business model

There has been a raging debate among MLB fans as to whether or not the tactics being employed by the big market teams are detrimental to the sport of baseball. In the modern-day equivalent of what the New York Yankees used to do during their dominant days in the 1990s, the Dodgers, along with other big market squads are now raking in stars with big contracts — albeit, with a few deferrals.

On Monday's episode of "The Mayor's Office with Sean Casey," the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Famer, along with co-host Rich Ciancimino, discussed whether or not the MLB can sustain its model of rich contracts being given exclusively to a small portion of the overall player base.

"51 players are making 50 percent of the money," Casey said (04:44). "I don't think that's a sustainable system."

Talks have been going on about a potential lockout at the end of the 2026 season due to the rampant and quasi-limited approach of squads handing out massive amounts to star players.

It can be recalled that the league went into a lockout after team owners who were being represented by MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and the MLBPA could not come to terms on a new CBA at the end of the 2021 season. The opening day of the 2022 campaign was delayed by a week.

"I do think that at the next collective bargaining agreement, the player's association and the owners really have to look at the system if the system is working for everybody," Casey said.

MLB insider believes it's harder to form a "super team" in baseball

In light of recent acquisitions made by teams such as the New York Mets and especially, the LA Dodgers, there have been debates when "super teams" are discussed.

However, MLB insider Rich Ciancimino has a different take on it.

"I think that among the four major sports, baseball is the least friendly to super teams," Ciancimino said on Monday, via "The Mayor's Office.'

The subject was tackled as the Dodgers have seemingly filled all their position players, including their pitching rotation, with star-caliber talent.

"If you have a super team in the NBA, there's a huge chance wherein you will make the Finals or even win it," Ciancimino said. "In baseball, there are several injuries that could occur and the season is so long that you can't immediately claim that the Dodgers are going to be repeat world champions."

Casey then supported Ciancimino's claim by saying that measuring the depth of personnel that a team has and how healthy a team is are the factors needed to contend.