The 2017 MLB offseason dominated headlines not for the usual activity that accompanied the winter, but rather the lack of free agent signings and unwillingness from teams to add significant salary to their respective payrolls.
It was highlighted by two financial behemoths in the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees largely sitting out of free agency as an effort to remain under the $197 million luxury tax threshold for this season.
Both clubs had exceeded the bar in each of the past five seasons and doing so again would’ve meant significant tax repercussions in the form of a 50 percent penalty on the overage and limited their spending moving forward.