The American League has won seven of the last 10 World Series. The American League has won the last eight All-Star games played to a decision and 14 of the past 17. Last season, the American League gained a 136-116 edge in interleague games. Do we see a trend here?
Or asked another way, whatever happened to the National League?
"We were talking about this two weeks ago," said Jim Duquette, a Baltimore Orioles executive late of the National League. "No doubt in my mind, the American League has gotten stronger."
Gerry Hunsicker, another National League emigre, offered a similar view.
"I think there are a lot of very average teams in the National League that have a number of issues, maybe moreso than I can remember in recent years," said Hunsicker, a Tampa Bay Devil Rays executive who was formerly the Houston Astros general manager. "I think the same thing holds true in the American League, although probably not to as great an extent."
By themselves, results of the World Series and All-Star games, even interleague games, might not establish a case for American League dominance, but taken together, they portray a trend that is difficult to ignore.
And if National League enthusiasts want to take exception, they should recall the years when NL All-Star teams were dominant, winning 11 straight and 19 of 20. They boasted of NL superiority, and they were justified in their claims. It was enough to make a grown man (AL president Lee MacPhail) cry.
The question is, why has that dominance shifted? Some people say it's cyclical, and developments support that theory. But as the interleague phase of this season's schedule begins Friday night, why is Major League Baseball in an American League cycle now?
Maybe money, for one answer.
Led by the free-spending Yankees, AL teams have four of the five biggest payrolls in the majors this season. The Yankees perennially have the largest payroll, prompting their competitors to spend along with them. This year's Toronto Blue Jays are a case in point.
Desperately desirous of joining the Yankees and the Red Sox in the AL East race, the Blue Jays inflated their payroll from US$45.4 million last year to US$72.9 million this year. The 2006 payroll is not one of the largest, but the 61 percent increase is easily the largest. Then there are the World Series champion White Sox, who fattened their payroll by US$25 million.
Overall, 11 of 14 AL payrolls but only nine of 16 NL payrolls went up this year, according to figures compiled by the commissioner's office. Only two AL payrolls but six NL payrolls went down.
Oddly, the Yankees' and the Mets' opening-day payrolls both went down, the Yankees from US$200.4 million to US$195.4, the Mets from US$103.8 million to US$101.6 million.
Economic expenditure has played a role in another way. Teams willing to spend the most money usually get the best free agents and the best players available in trades, and those are the players who help teams get to the playoffs.
"New York and Boston are the two biggest markets," said Dave Dombrowski, the Detroit general manager. "Usually that correlates to larger expenditures."
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