Former commissioner Peter Ueberroth initiated the collusion shortly after his election, claiming that spending millions to win a World Series was "damned dumb" and that it was "not smart" to sign players to long-term contracts.
From what I understand, Bud Selig and Jerry Reinsdorf were the two collusion ringleaders from the owners side. If that's the case, Selig does not deserve to be in the Hall of Fame.
Damages from the three rounds of collusion grievances totaled $280 million. Former commissioner Fay Vincent has stated that the addition of the Rockies, Marlins, Rays and Diamondbacks was a direct result of this, as the owners needed to raise revenue to pay that settlement.
All of this is absolutely true. Fay Vincent only lasted three years as commissioner before having to resign after a vote of no confidence because he was honest when he called the owners a pack of thieves. Not only were free agents not getting signed outside of their old teams, but the contracts they were getting from the old team were often for less money and limited to one year. In the rare cases where free agents signed with other clubs, it was only after their former owners secretly communicated among the conspiring owners that they weren't interested in re-signing the player. In the mid-80s the total payroll of baseball actually declined.
The players' union present distrust of ownership is related to these episodes.
