I really don't want to write about this

When I launched this baseball blog, I hoped, unsuccessfully it turns out, that Manny Machado or Bryce Harper would sign contracts before I had to write about the impasse in free agency.  Well, they didn't sign and I can't put off commenting about it any longer.

My reluctance to avoid the topic of the free agent market in baseball stems from three sources: the Mariner's are not in the auction for super players like Harper and Machado, you can't avoid explaining the boring intricacies of the system and, finally, as impactful as these negotiations to sign players may be, they highlight the least pleasant aspects of the least pleasant side of baseball - the Business.

And in the end, whether you are a player, agent or owner, any discussion of free agency unveils the unmistakable, but undeniable truth, that underneath it all, this game we love for its expansive green fields and sultry summer nights is all about... money.  You don't have to be Karl Marx to figure that out.  One glance at your wallet slowly emptying for a $20 "cheap seat," a $12 beer and $8 hot dog teaches even the least economically-interested fan that this game has more to do with money than anything else, including winning.

Of course, where money is involved greed will always be found.  And in the case of free agency, every one of the three involved parties, owners, agents and players alike, can legitimately accuse the other two of greed while, at the same time, neglecting to own up to their own.

Skipping the intricacies, it comes down to this.  Every player wants the largest and longest-term contract they can get... the sooner the better.  Every owner wants to tie up that player for the longest time at the lowest cost.  The agents just care about the size of the contract.

Under the current collective bargaining agreement, signings of free agents have tended to come later and later until, today, the most sought after players are still unsigned with spring training underway.  Whether by intent, coincidence, caution, good practice or collusion, the owners by refusing to budge, have held up signings to the point where players/agents have to cave if they are going to get any contract.

This tactic has worked to the owners' advantage because the teams, either by collusive agreement or common market sense, have created an auction where some teams declare from the start that they are not interested or cannot afford a free agent, leaving a small and less competitive pool of bidders.  Worse, among those not bidding are teams, like the Mariners, who in the process of rebuilding are unlikely to spend their money and deplete their options for a single, high cost superstar.  At its absolute worst, Max Scherzer suggested to Tom Boswell some of those teams starting over this season are actually "tanking."

That is the logjam the game is stuck in right now.  The four biggest ticket free agents, Machado, Harper and pitchers Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbel, are left unsigned and, behind them, are dozens of other less stellar, but eminently good to high quality ballplayers.  And with each day, the market value of those players drops as the list of interested and elgible teams declines.

I know, I know.  The catchphrase for many is, who cares when millionaires get in a fight with billionaires?  But there's a lot at stake here, fans included.  Earlier I suggested the issue of free agency makes no difference to the M's, this season at least.  In a rebuilding year they are not bidders in the Harper et. al. sweepstakes, but that's not completely accurate.  There are a lot of less spectacular, but good ballplayers in their own rights, who could fill out a less than complete Mariner's roster (or starting line-up, for that matter).  Adam Jones pique anyone's interest?

There were good reasons why I didn't write about this, none of the things I've discussed speak well to MLB or the people most closely involved with it.