‘It’s good for the game': Twins players accept Dodgers' offseason spending, embrace it as a challenge

Major League Baseball recorded its highest attendance totals in seven years, watched World Series TV ratings skyrocket in a star-studded matchup and reportedly raked in $12.1 billion in revenues last season.

Now, the driving discussion throughout the offseason is whether the sport is broken.

The Los Angeles Dodgers drew the ire from the other 29 fan bases with their spending this winter.

After winning the World Series, their second title since 2020, the team with the largest payroll committed more than $380 million to sign two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell, closer Tanner Scott, All-Star reliever Kirby Yates, outfielders Teoscar Hernandez and Michael Conforto, Korean infielder Hyesong Kim and Japanese starter Roki Sasaki.

I was on social media, and I saw the meme theyre going to sign Thanos, theyre going to sign Spider-Man, theyre going to sign Batman, Twins starter Pablo Lopez said.

Even if many fans and some owners loudly complain its unfair and a salary cap should be implemented, Twins players say they have no issues with the Dodgers spending.

You grow up and you have this dream of making it to the big leagues and you also have this dream of getting paid a lot of money as a free agent, Twins reliever Griffin Jax said.

A competitive team like them, willing to go spend this money to be competitive, why wouldnt a player want to go be a part of that? As a player, its exciting.

I think its good for the game.

Its the definition of a free market, and theyre using it to their advantage.

NEAL: Spring training will reveal strength of Twins' pitching The Dodgers have an estimated Opening Day payroll of $320 million, according to Cots Contracts, more than twice the size of the Twins $140 million payroll.

The Twins are in a different league with just three regular-season games against the Dodgers, but it is arguably baseballs closest thing to a superteam since the New York Yankees went to four consecutive World Series from 1998-2001.

In some ways, its reminiscent of the Golden State Warriors when they added Kevin Durant to a roster that had a 73-9 record the previous season.

I think it could send a message to other teams, Lopez said.

Every team wants to win, and if there is only one team taking every single player, Im sure that at some point the teams are going to be like ...

were also going to go out and get players.

Its just crazy every time you see the Dodgers take really good players.

Said Byron Buxton: Its actually kind of fun.

We still have to go out and play.

It dont matter how good your team is.

Everybody is good or else you wouldnt be here.

Its about how do you go out there and execute the right things, do what youre supposed to do.

There have been only three World Series winners in the past 25 years that entered the season with a payroll in the bottom half of the league: Houston (2017), Kansas City (2015) and Miami (2003).

My emails certainly reflect that there are fans in other markets who are concerned about their teams ability to compete, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters at the owners meetings earlier this month.

We always have to be concerned when our fans are concerned about something.

But pinning it on the Dodgers, Im not in that camp.

As much as the Dodgers are expected to dominate this year, with sportsbooks projecting more than 100 wins, baseballs postseason format creates more chances for an upset than some other sports.

The expanded playoffs helps, Jax said.

There hasnt been a back-to-back World Series winner in 20 years.

Thats parity right there.

I think in the last 10 years there might have been a couple repeat division winners, but especially in the AL Central, every couple years, its been a different team in that timeframe.

The baseball season is so long that so many things can happen..

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