Erik Neander

If baseball’s latest lockout was any indication, the MLBPA—even in a post-COVID world with teams’ finances rocking and some players still unwilling to get vaccinated in areas where it is required for private employees by law—continues to have enormous sway. Long “the most powerful union in sports," the MLBPA has weathered yet another CBA storm and come out the other side with league concessions no one expected them to get. This might lead you to believe that MLB workers have finally seized the means of production, but don't get it twisted. There is still a clear hierarchy in baseball, and Rays young gun Wander Franco found that out the hard way on Friday when he made the mistake of parking in GM Erik Neander’s parking spot.

Last month, the Rays announced they’d signed baseball operations leader Erik Neander to a multi-year contract extension that included a promotion from general manager to president of baseball operations. The Rays didn’t specify the contract’s exact length, but Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times now reports the extension tacked on an additional five seasons. Neander is now locked up to run Tampa Bay's baseball operations through the 2026 campaign.

The New York Yankees’ current 2021 payroll is $203.35 million, while the Tampa Bay Rays sit with a $70.85 million payroll. The baseball standard is usually the more money spent, the better the team will be. Why is it that the Rays continue to outperform the Yankees over the last...