I sometimes wonder at my own reactions as a fan to player salaries in professional sports, specifically football and baseball (I stopped caring about professional basketball some time ago). As a fan, I want my team to win, which usually involves having the most talented players. I tend to become angry with a talented player already on my team who demands more money, because I want that player to stay on my team. If the team refuses and the player leaves, the team is worse; and if the team acquiesces, the increased salary becomes a burden and may crowd out other talented players because of limited resources. So, I think, greedy player, just be happy with what you get, and stay with my team.
On the other hand, if my team could use a talented player who is asking for a big salary but balks at the price, I tend to become angry with the owner, because I want my team to be better, and acquiring that player will make it so. I then think, greedy owner, just pay the man, why don’t you want to win, what difference does it make to you, you are already rich, etc.
It is kind of interesting to see how the salary structure in the NFL, and to maybe a lesser extent in MLB, reflects the inequality that has evolved in the US economy. In the NFL, there is a salary cap, and there are handful of players who receive over $8 million per year, and a large number of young players on their first contracts which by rule are artificially low, and very few “middle class” players in between. The agreement to limit the salary on rookie contracts and lock them in for 4 to 5 years subsidizes the high end salaries on the second and third contracts for the coveted positions of quarterback, receiver, pass rusher, etc. Thus we witness a quarterback with all of 6 games played becoming the highest paid quarterback. A stark example of how rules distort this market is A J McCarren, who challenged the Bengals for keeping him on non-football injury list for an entire season, which prevented that season from counting as a year of service, and meant he was a restricted free agent. McCarren said he should have been reinstated on the roster because he could have passed his physical, and he won his grievance, thereby becoming a free agent. The difference for him is a roughly $2 million/yr restricted free agent contract vs $15 million/yr contract for an unrestricted free agent quarterback.
In the US economy, which has seen wage stagnation for the last two decades and the elimination of the middle class blue collar job, one can look at the demise of union bargaining power, the outsourcing of jobs to lower wage countries, and the concentration of business ownership due to cheap financing and almost total lack of enforcement of antitrust laws as factors keeping wages artificially low, all of which are the result of the market’s structure created by rules and regulations, i.e. political choices and not 'natural law.'
In real life, is there any such animal as a truly “free” market?