With three Twins playing in the All-Star Game Tuesday night, one starring in it and the team having the largest division lead of anyone in the American League, it would be hard for baseball fans in Minnesota not to feel good.

If it weren't for an impending strike, that is.

Once again, the players’ union is threatening a strike which would mean the end of the season and the cancellation of the playoffs, which the Twins have a good shot at making for the first time since 1991.

While the details may be complicated, the bottom line is that, unlike professional football or basketball, there is no salary cap in baseball. That is, teams can sign players to whatever salary they want without penalty. While the players' union likes it that way, the owners, who are paying more in salaries than they are earning in revenue, do not.

The argument has always been that the large-market teams such as New York, Texas and Los Angeles have a competitive advantage because they have more financial resources than small-market teams such as the Twins and Montreal.

However, this year, with both the Twins and Expos having winning records and Texas and the New York Mets having losing records, the theory doesn't seem to wash.

Thus, a strike would truly be about how to divvy up the money between the owners and players.

And if it means we don't get to watch the Twins in the playoffs, it will truly be a bad deal.