MLB teams have the right to stop competing teams from moving into their markets. This gives the incumbents of large markets a major advantage. You'd get much better revenue being the third team in NYC than you would by being the only one in Minnesota. Under the current rules though, such a move would not be allowed. It is only fair if big market teams pay for that protection, with the proceeds evenly distributed among all MLB teams.

You could perhaps even allow teams to decide how much money they pay each year, or whether they want to pay altogether. To discourage them from low-balling, allow any small market team to move into a larger market, on condition that it pay the incumbent a fixed multiple (e.g. 20) of its yearly protection money. There would still the problem of when you have two incumbent teams, each of whom would like to freeride on the other's protection money. I'm sure there must be standard ways of solving this problem, as it would be in each of their interests. At a minimum, each team would only receive a multiple of the protection money they themselves pay.

Additionally, since this idea would give baseball teams more options of where to move, it gives baseball teams move leverage to coerce cities to build them stadiums - as NFL teams do so effectively.

What do you think of this idea or comment?
(You can change your vote at any time)

I agree

No opinion

I disagree