Some of the richest and most popular people on the planet are professional athletes. Being seen and talked about across dozens of television channels, social media platforms, and sponsorships, athletes from sports leagues such as the National Football League, National Basketball Association, and United European Football Association Champions League make certain names and faces recognizable across the globe. Celebrity athletes were not always able to fully capitalize financially on their talent and popularity, however, the introduction of free agency in the late twentieth century revolutionized the sports market. The concept of free agency in sports revolves around an athlete and entertainer being able to gain as much financial value as possible on the open market by being able to court contract offers from several different teams and leagues.
This not only creates a sense of fairness for players making an honest cut of the league and owners’ revenue, but also intends to create parity from roster to roster. In most cases the worst teams in a sports league spend the least amount of money on players because of the poor quality of their roster. The biggest stars that become free agents after expiring contracts would then be able to go to a weaker team that can offer a lot more money than better teams with more complete rosters and more money that is already tied up. One example of this is superstar pitcher Jacob deGrom leaving his 101-win New York Mets team for the 68-94 Texas Rangers, who have not been to the playoffs in six seasons, for an extravagant 5-year $185 million contract- a long term contract that no competitive franchise could offer. Another example is wide receiver Christian Kirk signing the second highest annual average value contract in the entire 2022 free agency class of $18 million with the Jacksonville Jaguars, who had the worst record in the NFL the previous season.
Even while accounting for inflation over the past century, athletes made a fraction of what one of similar value would in 2023. The National Hockey League (NHL) is an excellent example of this, a league that does not generate as much revenue as aforementioned leagues. Bobby Orr, a defenseman who is widely regarded as one of the greatest hockey players of all time, made an average of $200,000 a year before taxes and agent fees during his prime years in the 1970s. Accounting for inflation, that would be a bit more than $1.1 million a year today. The average NHL salary in 2022 is now $3.5 million with the highest current annual average value contract (AAV) being $12.6 million by center Nathan McKinnon. Without free agency and the increased revenue earning of the NHL a top 5 player in hockey history would be making close to a rookie minimum salary in today’s NHL.
Free agency, however, has undergone a reassessment period over the last decade or so. The number of talented athletes in the world across each sport have significantly increased over the years, as well as league revenue having a steady incline. This naturally has resulted in players negotiating for significantly more AAV and total money. Competition between franchises will never cease, and more and more teams are willing to shovel hundreds of millions of dollars to sign the biggest names and make the deepest playoff runs. Teams like the Golden State Warriors signing forward Kevin Durant in 2016 and receiver A.J. Brown, signing with the Philadelphia Eagles this past NFL offseason, have shown the willingness to add huge contracts to already massive payrolls.
Major League Baseball faces a unique situation when it comes to their free agency. MLB does not impose a salary cap on teams, unlike the NBA and NFL of the previous examples. This allows for teams to sign players to as large a contract as the owners and general managers are willing to spend. While select owners and teams being willing to spend frivolously is not something new to baseball (see George Steinbrenner of the New York Yankees), Steve Cohen, the newest owner of the New York Mets, has been spending on a whole other level. Being an avid lifelong fan of the Mets, Cohen has sought to obtain a championship through spending on big free agents. In less than three years of being the majority owner, the Cohen-era Mets have broken records for both the most expensive AAV payroll in MLB history, as well as one of the largest individual contracts signed with shortstop Francisco Lindor and pitcher Max Scherzer.
While some admire the commitment to improving his team, others question whether this is an effective way to build a championship team. Questions about fairness and parity have also risen regarding how small market teams with owners who do not have as much money to invest in a team as others. The effectiveness of this strategy will most certainly be put to the test this coming season, as fans wait to see what changes, if any, will be made to the way their favorite teams sign favorite players.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.