Small Market Teams: MLB's Farm System

Let's take an objective look at the 2009 playoff field as a case study for the exodus of small market talent to the more fortunate MLB money-shellers of the world.

A quick rundown of the postseason players who have been pulled in by the high-rollers of MLB (with their previous teams):

Yankees
CC Sabathia (Indians)
Nick Swisher (A's, via White Sox)
Mark Teixeira (Rangers, via Angels)
A.J. Burnett (Marlins)

Angels
Scott Kazmir (Rays)
Brian Fuentes (Rockies)
Torii Hunter (Twins)
Gary Matthews Jr. (Rangers)

Red Sox
Josh Beckett (Marlins)
Victor Martinez (Indians)

Cardinals
Mark DeRosa (from Indians in '09)
Matt Holliday (Rockies/A's)

Dodgers
Casey Blake (Indians)
George Sherill (Orioles)

Phillies
Cliff Lee (Indians)
Ben Francisco (Indians)
J.C. Romero (Twins)

These examples are not out of the ordinary-- they are simply a product of the way baseball works without a salary cap. The fact that Cliff Lee, C.C. Sabathia, Ben Francisco, and Victor Martinez were the core of the Indians ALCS squad just 2 seasons ago and are now thriving elsewhere is as wrong as Tim Hardaway living in San Francisco.

Which brings us to the most absurd note of talent swindling this year, courtesy of fellow contributor BornInTheBleachers....

The Oakland Athletics made three "big-name" offseason acquisitions THIS year-- Orlando Cabrera, Matt Holliday, and Jason Giambi.

All three played in this year's postseason. For teams other than the A's.

Finally, consider that 5 of the 8 playoff teams were among the top 10 league payrolls at the beginning of the season (Yankees (1), Red Sox (4), Angels (6), Phillies (7), Dodgers (9)). Over the last decade, the average is just more than half (4.1). On top of that, if you extend to the top 15 league payrolls, the average jumps up significantly (5.3).

What can we deduce from this statistic? It's not overwhelming, but the fact that nearly 70% of playoff teams are in the top half of the cash spectrum suggests a legitimate correlation.

The truth is that fans of small market teams today do not root for any "team" at all, but instead rally around a jersey with rotating bodies filling in.

Let's just hope the real Major League Baseball "farm system" has a shorter lifespan than any of these players did with their struggling former employers.