Almost always when this happens (that I see anyway) someone from the winning team will switch or ask to switch to the losing side. Often times no one from the losing team moves to spec to facilitate the move and if an admin isn't on, the losing team is SOL. The cheaper items has also helped with balance, as the winning team will usually go 20-4 then by the end of the match the score will be 24-10 or 20-15.

The worst is when it is one sided and someone that was carrying the winning team switches and gets the cheap items >.<

Overall, I like that functionality though. People should just play Magician when their items get cheap. Nothin like 3 full item birds spawning every round