Ex-Marlins president uncovers secret to Los Angeles Dodgers’ financial power

There has been an ongoing debate about whether the Los Angeles Dodgers are harming the game. What was initially an argument about the $700 million deal Shohei Ohtani signed last season has blown into a controversial topic when the team signed many high-valued free agents this window, like Roki Sasaki, Blake Snell, and Tanner Scott.

On his eponymous Nothing Personal with David Samson podcast, the former Miami Marlins president tackled the key to the Los Angeles Dodgers' immense power and how they maneuver it when it comes to signing valued targets.

"The Dodgers' ability to monetize their team has grown in comparison to other teams that have stagnated," said Samson.

"The team has been able to keep their local broadcast revenue at the exact same level that it was supposed to be at the time the contract was signed whereas all other 29 teams' revenues have stopped growing or has grown at a smaller percentage than what was projected."

Samson pointed to the deal where the Los Angeles Dodgers signed a $8.35 billion deal over 25 years with what was then the Time Warner Cable company.

It was vital in the Dodgers' purse, as it pays around $334 million a year. When Time Warner was on the brink of collapse, it was acquired by Charter Communications, Inc., the largest cable operator in the nation.

It can be recalled that unlike the partnership with the a big-market team like the Dodgers that bore SportsNet LA, several lower market teams were affected when Bally Sports (now known as the FanDuel Sports Network), filed for bankruptcy due to low viewership revenue and high operating costs.

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Davis Samson says Los Angeles Dodgers aren't doing anything illegal

Several personalities and fans have speculated that a long lockout will ensue after the collective bargaining agreement expires at the end of 2026 due to the "bending of the rules" the Los Angeles Dodgers have allegedly done in the past few years.

Ex-Marlins president David Samson, though, has a different take on things.

"Even the late Yankees owner George Steinbrenner said to me directly: "Don't you complain about what I'm doing. Because we do it within the rules that you voted for.""

"What the Dodgers are doing are operating within the rules of baseball. And if you're going to see change, it's going to come as an industry as part of a new collective bargaining agreement. Otherwise, the Dodgers are a runaway train with no end in sight."

It will be interesting to see the reigning World Series champions are going to navigate through a season with most opposing fans expressing their disdain with the deals the Dodgers are making.