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LOS ANGELES – Joel Wolfe, the agent for Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, is pushing back against MLB’s approach to a potential lockout and its proposal for a salary cap.
Wolfe criticized the commissioner’s office in a November 6 report by Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich of The Athletic, describing its handling of the lockout calendar as “incredibly obtuse and offensive.” He compared it to planning a wedding or bar mitzvah.
He was just as direct about accepting limits on player salaries.
“Over our dead bodies are we going to accept a cap and further restraints on salaries.”
Joel Wolfe, via The Athletic
The MLB Players Association also highlighted Wolfe’s comments in its own recap of the report, which described rival agents finding common ground as labor negotiations continue.
Joel Wolfe joins agents opposing MLB salary cap
Wolfe, whose clients also include Chris Sale and Zack Wheeler, said agents had compared experiences involving NBA players under that league’s salary-cap system. Scott Boras also challenged the relationship between rising franchise values and player compensation in capped leagues.
MLB spokesman Glen Caplin defended the league’s position in the report, saying fans support the type of economic system used in other major sports.
The disagreement comes after MLB proposed delaying a salary cap and payroll floor until 2028. The proposal calls for a $258.2 million cap and a $180.2 million floor. The union remains opposed to a cap, including concerns about its effect on guaranteed contracts and player earnings.
The current collective bargaining agreement expires December 1. A lockout would be an owners-imposed work stoppage, and its timing and duration would determine how much of the offseason or playing schedule it affects. The expiration date itself does not establish that games will be lost.
The Dodgers have offseason decisions ahead
For Dodgers fans, Wolfe’s connection to Yamamoto brings a familiar name into the labor debate. His comments address the bargaining fight across baseball, with agents preparing to defend the market their clients enter.
The Dodgers also have an immediate decision involving Tarik Skubal, a Boras client. Their effort to retain him has generated discussion about a shorter contract with a higher annual salary as teams weigh major commitments ahead of the CBA deadline.
Whether the sides can reach a new agreement before that deadline will help determine how long clubs can keep conducting their winter business without an interruption.
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