DENVER -- Despite cutting their payroll in the offseason, the Colorado Rockies have more debt than the league permits and could be fined or lose television revenue.

Rockies managing general partner Jerry McMorris said several expensive long-term contracts meant the Rockies were not in compliance with the league debt rule, the Rocky Mountain News reported Thursday from Tucson, Ariz., where the Rockies are holding their training camp.

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A situation like Colorado's -- a team with a mid-range payroll and strong revenues (12th-most in 2001, according to MLB figures) -- shows how franchises were caught off guard by the new enforcement of the 40-percent debt/value rule. The Rockies are stable financially, but have large "debt" due to expensive long-term contracts for Todd Helton (signed through 2011), Mike Hampton (signed through 2008), Larry Walker (signed through 2005) and Denny Neagle (signed through 2005). Rob Manfred, MLB's vice president of labor relations, said Thursday, "During the strike we probably didn't enforce it as strictly as we could have. ... But the rule has been out there forever." Manfred would not comment on how many teams are not under compliance. Gene Orza, general counsel of the Players Assocation, said the MLBPA could file a grievance if the rule is enforced. "(The owners) will lose the (grievance) case if there is an obvious goal, which is to reduce salaries." Some have suggested that reducing player salaries is the intention behind suddenly enforcing the rule -- a de facto salary cap. "The Players Association will never agree to a salary cap or anything close to it," Orza said. "Pay them whateve you want, just don't complain about it." --Darren Rovell, ESPN.com

Teams must meet the debt-ratio rule by June 1 or risk being fined, losing their share of national broadcast payments or being placed in trusteeship. The league requires that a team's debt be 40 percent or less of its franchise value.

This is the first year the Rockies will have a smaller payroll than the year before. Anticipated payroll this year is $47 million, down from $65 million last year.

McMorris would not discuss specifics, but said the Rockies were carrying debt in addition to the long-term contract commitments to players.

According to the debt ratio rule, which only recently commissioner Bud Selig said will now be enforced, a team's debts include stadium debts, loans to club owners and the present-day value of long-term player contracts. A team's value, according to a letter Selig sent owners recently, is double its annual revenues (although teams can use an outside appraisal).

By using the revenue figures Selig presented to Congress during the offseason, the Rockies' revenues in 2001 were $121 million, which would give the franchise a value of $242 million.

In addition to an anticipated payroll of $47 million for the 2002 season, the Rockies have $344.1 million committed beyond the current season in long-term contracts to six players.

`"We took steps this winter to get in compliance, but we have a considerable ways to go," McMorris said. "We don't consider ourselves a franchise in jeopardy, but we definitely have a tremendous amount of long-term commitments that we have to work through."

The Major League Baseball Players Association is expected to challenge Selig's decision to enforce the debt ratio, claiming that making teams adhere to the rule will lower the amount of money teams can spend on player salaries.