As the season wears on and we start rapidly approaching the trade deadline, there’s another component that needs to be looked at. The Competitive Balance Tax (aka Luxury Tax) threshold.
For those who don’t know, it’s a “cap” with financial penalties if you spend over the allotted threshold, and there is an associated additional cost for every dollar over that limit. MLB has a whole explanation of the process and associated amounts, but I will focus strictly on the Astros for the 2019 and 2020 seasons.
For 2019, the Competitive Balance Tax threshold is set at $206 Million dollars.