As the Los Angeles Dodgers captured a second consecutive World Series in an epic seven-game classic, there has been no shortage of jeers from the greater baseball world amid the celebration.
The talking points that many rely upon are that the Dodgers’ championships are invalid since their payroll is so high, and because of their spending, they are ruining the sport. In reality, they are the second-most generous in terms of how much of their 2024 revenue went into the 2025 payroll.
The New York Mets put 90 percent of 2024’s revenue into the payroll for this past season, the Dodgers reinvested 73 percent, and trailing the Dodgers were the Toronto Blue Jays at 71.5 percent.
Regardless, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman defended his team (and their spending) and spoke on the reason why they led MLB in payroll this season.
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“Yeah, I mean, for us, it is all about our incredible fans and us giving back,” Friedman said. “What they bring night-in and night-out, the passion that they show for the Dodgers — now, this is my 11th season and even on the road, the number of Dodger fans that are there and just the love that they have for this team, our job is to pour ourselves back into it and try to give them a team that can compete for championships, and that they can be proud of. And for us, that’s our focus. Everything for us is about pouring back into our fans and that partnership that we have with them.
“So, you know, that’s our focus. So anything else that comes from it — and obviously, I’ve heard a lot of it — it’s just not front of mind for us because everything is around how do we put ourselves in the best position to win now and also to win in the future.”
The spending on top talent leads to better baseball being played which leads to the thing fans wish for at the start of each season: a championship.
Friedman’s words likely won’t silence the naysayers, but in terms of how much of the prior season’s revenue goes back into the roster, perhaps the Dodgers aren’t the ones ‘ruining’ baseball.
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Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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