As he bids for New York Mets, Alex Rodriguez says MLB players, owners should 'split the economics evenly'
Alex Rodriguez, who signed two of the richest deals in Major League Baseball history and made roughly $450 million in salary as a player, suggested players accept a salary cap in future labor negotiations.
Of course, the 14-time All-Star has reason for the about-face. Rodriguez, along with partner and entertainment icon Jennifer Lopez, are headlining an ownership bid for the New York Mets, according to multiple reports. He also cited the growth of the NFL and NBA over the last two decades and how those leagues have revenue splits between ownership and players along with a cap.
“The only way it’s going to happen is if they get to the table and say the No. 1 goal, let’s get from $10 to $15 billion and then we’ll split the economics evenly,” Rodriguez told reporters on Thursday during a conference call. “But that’s the type of conversation instead of fighting and fighting against each other because there’s too much competition out there right now.
“Today the NBA has become an international conglomerate, NFL’s a juggernaut. Back then there was no Netflix, there was no Snapchat, there was no Disney+, ESPN+ and everything they’re doing to attract their attention. So today we have to really work collaborative, with the players and the owners, to say how do we compete together to become No. 1?”
After the call, Rodriguez posted a statement on Twitter late Thursday night to note that he did not explicitly say the words "salary cap," although the model he proposed is essentially one.
MLB players' union chief Tony Clark quickly rebuked Rodriguez's comments Thursday.
“Alex benefited as much as anybody from the battles this union fought against owners’ repeated attempts to get a salary cap,” he said in a statement. “Now that he is attempting to become an owner himself his perspective appears to be different. And that perspective does not reflect the best interests of the players.”
Still signed up as the color commentator for Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN for this season, the network has decided to move him off the Mets-Atlanta Braves game on July 26, per the call. It's the lone Sunday night game the Mets are scheduled to play.
Contributing: Associated Press