Report: CBA has 'death penalty' for teams exceeding international cap

Teams that try to cheat the international bonus pool limits under Major League Baseball's new collective bargaining agreement will be in for some harsh punishments if caught in the act.

Under terms of the new CBA between MLB and its Players' Association, MLB can impose what amounts to a "death penalty" on teams caught exceeding the now iron-clad bonus limits, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. MLB will be allowed to take away up to 50 percent of a team's international bonus pool money through 2021 - when the CBA expires - should the limit be exceeded.

One aspect of the old international rules that will remain in place, albeit with a slight variation given the new cap, is the trading of international bonus money. Teams will still be allowed to include sums of money in trades, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, meaning a team could go over the hard $5-million limit by acquiring more money in a deal.

Baseball's penalties for overspending on the international market came into play this past July when, under the old rules, the Boston Red Sox were caught exceeding the limit to sign multiple players a year prior. As punishment, the team was barred from participating in the 2016 signing period, and the contracts of five prospects were voided. The Red Sox will not have their penalties changed as a result of the new CBA.

These new penalties would effectively eliminate a team that's caught overspending from signing any future international free agents for the length of the CBA. It also likely ends the days of highly touted international prospects like Yoan Moncada - who inked a $31.5-million deal with Boston in 2015 - signing multi-million dollar contracts as amateurs.

The CBA, which has yet to be ratified by either side, also raised the age cap of international signings from 23 to 25. Players over the age of 25 will not be subject to the cap rules, and will be free to sign for any amount.