Collusion Cliffs Notes

Are you the General Manager for a Major League Baseball team? Are you unsure of yourself as you stick your big toe into the Lake of Off-season Transactions? Is there a player's agent on the other line, suggesting 12 years and $200 million would be just about right for Troy Glaus?

Well, then, Major League Baseball feels your pain, and are prepared to do something about. Just fax them a form that includes the player's name and the length of contract you're thinking of offering. Then MLB labor relations will crunch the numbers and give you a range of salary to offer, based on age, injury history, etc., relevant to other players/free agents out there.

Collusion? No, says Mike's Rants, this is intended to cover the rears of GMs and MLB against charges of collusion. GMs are not allowed to share the information, so how can there be collusion? Collusion implies conspiracy, and this is all above board.

I see these moves as have three ultimate goals. First and foremost, to protect MLB against any sort of collusion settlement that was seen after the 1986-88 seasons. At least, they’re more creating today than in Peter Ueberroth’s days.

Second, they want to make sure that regular business, including reining in maverick teams who are doling out Amigo money on free agent contracts, is maintained.

Third, this was a wakeup call to the teams who rubberstamped the advice in the past and offered remarkably similar contracts to similar players. No good confidence can be run when you have thirty partners who are such boobs.

We can expect the next installment of "Collective Bargaining Agreement" to be a little more thrilling than the last one. The players, in the wake of good feeling towards the game following the attacks of Sept. 11, were a little too willing to be rolled by the owners. With player's salaries looking so soft since then, I don't think they're going to go gently into that good night the next time.