1.   Salary caps are imposed to prevent richer clubs gaining an unfair advantage over poorer rivals by offering players inflated salaries.

2.   A Giants manager is expected to do his best with an underpaid roster of cast-off players and yearn silently for a job with a richer club.

3.   But even this year, the richer clubs benefited, because they could still afford to pay more for players.

4.   Economically, the deal is geared toward placing some restraint on player salaries through a revolutionary tax on payrolls and toward transferring money from richer clubs to poorer clubs.

5.   In effect, that kind of deal serves as a tax shelter for richer clubs.

6.   It also helps that clubs can sign their own television contracts, providing the richer clubs with even more cash.

7.   Richer clubs may spend extra money on free-agent talent, but that has no proven record of success.

8.   That system would not prevent the richer clubs from spending whatever they wanted, but it would give the poorer clubs some measure of relief.

9.   The owners continue to discuss a plan for the richer clubs to share their local revenue with the poorer clubs.

10.   The richer clubs have agreed to do that but only if the players accept a cap on their salaries.