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Major League Baseball is in a big situation right now, and World Series champion John Smoltz said the sport can’t afford a work stoppage.
The collective bargaining agreement between MLB and the MLBPA will expire at the end of the season, setting up what appears to be a long and contentious period of negotiations over the winter. Smoltz said this head-on collision has been going on for a long time and the two sides cannot afford to make mistakes.
“We know that if they don’t figure this out, baseball is going to suffer. They can’t afford to have a lockout with all the good that’s been done and all the great games that have been played lately with the World Series,” Smoltz told Pak Gazette Digital in a recent interview.
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Hall of Famer John Smoltz is introduced during the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown, New York, on July 27, 2025. (Gregory Fisher/Image Images)
MLB is pushing hard for a salary cap to be implemented, while the MLBPA vehemently opposes the salary cap. Smoltz acknowledges there is a competitive balance issue and disparity, but believes much of the spending has been done on purpose.
“There is a competition problem in baseball and a disparity that is greater than ever, and I think a lot of it has been on purpose to get to this point where the Dodgers are spending beyond belief and the Mets are spending beyond belief. Until recently, nothing guaranteed a championship,” Smoltz said.
“The Dodgers have been back-to-back champions for the first time since the Yankees. That’s the uniqueness of 162 games. You basically have eight to 10 teams that aren’t trying to win anything.”
The Dodgers won the World Series in 2024 and 2025, becoming the first team to repeat as champions since the New York Yankees won three straight championships from 1998 to 2000. The Baseball Hall of Famer said he questions the idea that a new system will automatically fix current problems.
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Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz pitches against the Washington Nationals in the third inning at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC, on May 14, 2007. (James Lang/USA TODAY Sports)
“There is a disparity within baseball that some systems claim will fix. I question that a lot. Until you have teams and owners who want to put the best product they can on the field in their market, it’s hard for me to be able to tell anyone what they can and can’t spend in a free market world,” Smoltz said.
“However, this is a monopoly, right? This is an anti-rust. There is definitely a separate system for Major League Baseball.”
Smoltz noted that the game has gotten younger and with that, 2% of the players make 98% of the money. He said careers are getting shorter, which is driving veterans out of the game.
The Atlanta Braves legend also noted that a salary cap has not translated into a competitive environment in other professional sports leagues.
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John Smoltz watches his shot from the eighth tee during the first round of the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club in Orlando, Florida, on January 29, 2026. (Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
“Because if you look at all the other sports and what they’ve tried to do, you can argue that you know salary caps in other sports haven’t exactly produced a competitive environment where most teams have a chance,” Smoltz said.
“In fact, they have formed super teams in the NBA for a long time.”
MLB and MLBPA first exchanged formal proposals in late May and, as expected, the two sides are far apart. The MLBPA offered a proposal first, and MLB responded with a salary cap and salary floor, and no formal proposals have been made since.
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John Smoltz tees off during the Capital One MLB Open at Shadow Creek Golf Course in North Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 14, 2025. (Lucas Peltier/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Major League Baseball said in an announcement last month that viewership for exclusive domestic games is up 44% from last season, and is the best in the last nine seasons. Regardless of the solution for MLB and the MLBPA, Smoltz just wants to see something resolved so baseball can continue to build on its momentum.
The eight-time All-Star spent 21 seasons in the Major Leagues, 20 of them with the Braves. He spent his final season with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Boston Red Sox.
Smoltz has a career record of 213-155, a 3.33 ERA and 154 saves as he became a reliever for a few seasons after his Tommy John surgery. He is competing in the American Century Championship, which will be held July 10-12 at Edgewood Golf Course in Lake Tahoe. The tournament will air on NBC and Peacock.
