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Tony Clark

MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark Given Five-Year Extension

By Darragh McDonald | November 29, 2022 at 9:23am CDT

The Major League Baseball Players Association has voted to extend the contract of executive director Tony Clark, according to Evan Drellich of The Athletic. His previous extension was set to expire at the end of the year, but he will now stay on through 2027. Since the new collective bargaining agreement expires after the 2026 season, Clark is now set to remain at the table to be involved in negotiating the next CBA.

Clark, 50, spent 15 years in the majors as a player, from 1995 to 2009. As detailed by Drellich in a lengthy profile, Clark then became a protege of Michael Weiner, the previous head of the union. Weiner had only taken over the job in 2009 but received tragic news of a terminal cancer diagnosis in 2012. When he passed away in 2013, Clark was voted to take over the position, just a few years after concluding his playing career.

At the time, MLB and the MLBPA seemed to be on relatively good terms, as there had not been a work stoppage since the 1994-1995 strike. However, the first CBA negotiated under Clark in 2016 was almost universally panned as being too skewed to the owners’ interests. Though the union did earn some modest gains on things like the minimum salary and changes to the schedule, the most significant changes saw increased penalties for teams that went over the competitive balance tax line and a hard cap on signings of international amateur free agents.

Despite the poor reception of that CBA, Clark was given an extension in November of 2018. At that time, work was already being done to prepare for the next round of negotiations. The MLBPA hired Bruce Meyer in August of 2018 with the title of senior director of collective bargaining & legal. Meyer brought years of experience to the table, having previously worked for the NHLPA and having provided outside counsel to the NBA and NFL unions.

Clark’s time since signing that extension has been quite active, to say the least. Before even getting to the next round of CBA negotiations, the league was trying to purchase licensing rights from the union. The MLBPA didn’t like the offer and instead joined with the NFLPA to form OneTeam Partners alongside RedBird Capital in 2019. OneTeam reached an exclusive deal with the trading card company Fanatics and the Wall Street Journal gave the company a $2 billion valuation last year.

Then the MLBPA had to deal with the COVID pandemic disrupting the 2020 season. Though a shortened 60-game season was eventually played, it was clear that the relationship between the league and the union was at a low ebb with just one year remaining in the CBA. Negotiations didn’t lead to a deal and MLB locked out the players on December 1 of 2021, the first work stoppage in over 25 years.

The lockout would eventually drag on for 99 days, resulting in a new CBA being agreed to on March 10 of 2022. By all accounts, Clark and the union did much better this time around. The lowest threshold of the CBT jumped $20MM, from $210MM to $230MM, the largest single-year jump in its history. It will reach $244MM by the end of the agreement. A notable jump in the minimum salary was secured, in addition to a pool of $50MM to be distributed among pre-arbitration players. Concerns over service time manipulation were addressed by creating incentives for teams who promote top prospects on Opening Day, while those who debut later can still earn a full year of service time based on awards voting. In order to achieve these goals, the players gave the league new revenue sources, including extra playoff games and advertising on uniforms.

That’s not to say that everything is sunshine and rainbows for the MLBPA. The union represents over 1,000 players who are at different stages of their careers and will naturally have different ideas about the priorities of the union. The MLBPA’s executive board voted 26-12 in favor of the new CBA, but all eight members of the executive subcommittee were in those 12 votes against. I think we accomplished a lot,” catcher Jason Castro tells Drellich. “There were things that we could have still kept fighting for, hence the ‘no’ vote for me. But at the end of the day, we were representing a large number of guys, and the priorities aren’t necessarily there. … You’re not going to get everything all at once, unless you’re just happy with sitting out and not playing. Which I mean, some guys were definitely for.” Bruce Meyer framed the situation similarly. “We said, ‘Here’s the deal. We think it’s a good deal. We think it’s the best deal we could have negotiated at this point without missing games. If we miss a bunch of games, it’s possible that we could do better, but can’t guarantee it.’ And based on that, the majority of the players approved it. But it was not in any sense a rebuke of the union.”

Beyond the work done in the CBA, the MLBPA also took the monumental step of unionizing minor league players, something that had never been done in the long history of Major League Baseball. The minor leaguers will have their own separate bargaining unit under the MLBPA umbrella and a minor league CBA will be negotiated independently of the one that applies to those in the majors. A minor league CBA is not yet in place but the negotiations have begun, which could potentially lead to progress on longstanding issues for younger players like substandard pay and housing conditions. The MLBPA has also joined the AFL-CIO, opening opportunities for players to access further benefits.

Time will tell whether the new CBA has paid off for the major league players but the early returns seem to be positive for the MLBPA. Six teams went over the luxury tax line in 2022, with the Mets going over the new fourth threshold, while prospect promotion seems to have increased. One prospect who missed the start of the season due to injury, Adley Rutschman, ended up earning a full year of service time by coming in second in Rookie of the Year voting, meaning he will reach free agency one year earlier than he would have under the previous CBA. Based on those positive signs, Clark has earned himself another extension. His salary is not public at this time but will be revealed later as the union continues to publish its financial reports. He made $2.25MM in 2021.

In other MLBPA news, Drellich also noted on Twitter that a new executive subcommittee has been voted on. Scherzer, Castro, Andrew Miller, Zack Britton, James Paxton and Gerrit Cole are out, being replaced by Jack Flaherty, Lance McCullers Jr., Ian Happ, Austin Slater, Lucas Giolito and Brent Suter, with Marcus Semien and Francisco Lindor the two holdovers.

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MLBPA Representation Of Minor Leaguers Becomes Official

By Darragh McDonald | September 14, 2022 at 4:55pm CDT

The MLBPA’s efforts to represent minor leaguers have officially paid off, according to Evan Drellich of The Athletic and Jeff Passan of ESPN.

Just over two weeks ago, it was reported that the MLBPA had taken initial steps towards unionizing minor leaguers, with those players being asked to vote on designating the MLBPA as their collective bargaining representatives. About a week later, the MLBPA announced that a “significant” majority of minor leaguers have signed authorization cards in favor of the MLBPA creating a minor league bargaining unit, with the MLBPA requested that MLB recognize this effort. A few days later, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred announced that the league would indeed recognize as the bargaining representatives for minor leaguers. Today, an arbiter validated the card count with MLB then voluntarily recognizing the union.

MLBPA executive director Tony Clark released a statement on Twitter, which reads:

“I applaud this extraordinary group of young Players and welcome them to the MLBPA. This historic achievement required the right group of Players at the right moment to succeed. Minor leaguers have courageously seized that moment, and we look forward to improving their terms and conditions of employment through the process of good faith collective bargaining. I also want to acknowledge the tireless efforts of Harry Marino and the dedicated group he led at Advocates for Minor Leaguers, without whom this historic organizing campaign would not have been possible.”

Recent reporting revealed that every member of the Advocates for Minor Leaguers staff resigned and took on new jobs with the MLBPA. Membership in the union will now grow from 1200 to more than 5,000, though an MLBPA official told MLBTR last week the proposed unionization efforts would give minor leaguers their own separate bargaining unit under the MLBPA umbrella, adding that any minor league CBA would be negotiated independently of the Major League CBA that was completed earlier this year. Players in the rookie level Dominican Summer League will not automatically be included because it’s based outside the United States, but the MLBPA plans to bargain over DSL working conditions despite those players not officially joining the Association.

Congresspeople from both parties recently expressed an interest in reconsidering MLB’s antitrust exemption. Low rates of pay for minor leaguers has been one of many legislators’ critiques, but recognition of a union and signing a collective bargaining agreement with minor leaguers would take that issue outside the realm of antitrust law and into labor law territory.

Today’s news brings minor leaguers officially into a union for the first time in history, setting the stage for them to also negotiate the first ever CBA for minor leaguers. The various substandard working conditions of minor leaguers have become increasingly highlighted in recent years, with a focus on the low rates of pay and poor housing. There had been some small progress, with reporting in October of last year revealing that MLB was requiring teams to begin to provide housing for all MiLB players, something they were not previously required to do. In July, MLB paid $185MM to settle a lawsuit that began in 2014 related to low wages and minor league players not being paid for Spring Training. These issues, and any other issues minor leaguers may have, will now be addressed through collective bargaining between the union and the league. The MLBPA also recently joined the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), which will likely impact minor leaguers more than their major league counterparts since the benefits of AFL-CIO programs are in areas such as mortgages and car purchases.

All told, it seems like significant changes for Minor League Baseball and its players could be coming over the horizon, though the exact nature of those changes won’t be known until the bargaining process begins in earnest.

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Manfred: MLB Plans To Recognize MLBPA’s Representation Of Minor League Players

By Steve Adams and Anthony Franco | September 10, 2022 at 5:46pm CDT

TODAY: The card-check agreement has been finalized, ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Jesse Rogers report, and a neutral arbiter will receive the MLBPA’s union authorization cards on Wednesday.

SEPTEMBER 9: Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred announced today that the league is prepared to voluntarily recognize the MLBPA as the new collective bargaining representatives for minor league players. The announcement comes less than two weeks after the MLBPA sent authorization cards to minor leaguers seeking to represent them, and just days after the union received “significant” majority support and formally requested that the commissioner’s office voluntarily recognize the seismic shift in player representation. According to Evan Drellich of the Athletic (Twitter link), the recognition is pending agreement between the league and union on a card-check resolution — essentially an independent verification of the authorization cards sent last month.

MLBPA executive director Tony Clark released a statement in response to MLB’s announcement (relayed by James Wagner of the New York Times):

“We are pleased (MLB) is moving forward with this process in a productive manner. While there are significant steps remaining, we are confident discussions will reach a positive outcome.”

Had the league not agreed, the MLBPA would have engaged with the federal National Labor Relations Board to prompt an election among minor leaguers. Assuming a majority of those who voted approved of MLBPA representation, the NLRB could then have forced MLB’s hand in recognizing the unionization. Those extra steps won’t be necessary, following today’s announcement by Manfred.

An MLBPA official told MLBTR last week the proposed unionization efforts would give minor leaguers their own separate bargaining unit under the MLBPA umbrella, adding that any minor league CBA would be negotiated independently of the Major League CBA that was completed earlier this year. The MLBPA recently announced it had hired all members of the group Advocates For Minor Leaguers, a move which bolstered the union’s leadership ranks in preparation for the shift, which will see MLBPA membership grow from 1200 to more than 5000.

MLB’s announcement figures to accelerate the process for eventually getting minor league players under the MLBPA umbrella. League recognition would serve as an implicit acknowledgement that the majority of minor leaguers would likely have voted in favor of unionization had the PA petitioned the NLRB for an election.

It now seems all but certain minor leaguers will soon become members of the MLB Players Association. It’s completely uncharted territory for minor leaguers, who have never previously been part of a union. In a full post earlier this week, Drellich spoke to a handful of minor league players about the process. Drellich noted that players in the rookie level Dominican Summer League will not automatically be included because it’s based outside the United States, but the MLBPA is now likely to represent players from domestic complex ball up through Triple-A and plans to bargain over DSL working conditions despite those players not officially joining the Association.

Drellich wrote this evening that both the league and MLBPA believe it possible to hammer out a CBA for minor league players in time for the start of the 2023 season. Negotiations figure to start not long after MLB grants its formal recognition (assuming it transpires), and Drellich notes it’s possible the card-check agreement could be reached in the near future, barring setbacks.

As he points out, the expected recognition comes just a couple months after Congresspeople from both parties expressed an interest in reconsidering MLB’s antitrust exemption. Low rates of pay for minor leaguers has been one of many legislators’ critiques, but recognition of a union and signing a collective bargaining agreement with minor leaguers would take that issue outside the realm of antitrust law and into labor law territory.

It’s set to be a monumental change for the MLBPA, which also joined the AFL-CIO this week. The union’s efforts at both expanding its membership and increasing its communication with labor leaders in other industries comes on the heels of a few years of labor strife. Clark pointed to the contentious return-to-play negotiations after the 2020 COVID shutdown and last winter’s lockout as reasons for affiliating with the AFL-CIO.

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MLB To Implement Pitch Clock, Limit Defensive Shifts Beginning In 2023

By Steve Adams | September 9, 2022 at 12:02pm CDT

Major League Baseball announced Friday that the Competition Committee — an 11-person panel consisting of six ownership representatives, four players and one umpire — has voted to implement three new rule changes for the 2023 season: a pitch clock, a limitation on defensive shifting and larger bases.

Commissioner Rob Manfred issued the following statement after the vote:

“These steps are designed to improve pace of play, increase action, and reduce injuries, all of which are goals that have overwhelming support among our fans. Throughout the extensive testing of recent years, Minor League personnel and a wide range of fans – from the most loyal to casual observers – have recognized the collective impact of these changes in making the game even better and more enjoyable. We appreciate the participation of the representatives of the Major League Players and Umpires in this process.”

The league’s press release describes the changes (and provides context from minor league testing of the pitch clock) as follows:

  • Pitch Timer: A Pitch Timer will improve pace of play and reduce dead time.  The Pitch Timer Regulations include the following provisions:
    • A pitcher must begin his motion before the expiration of the timer.  Pitchers will have up to 15 seconds between pitches when the bases are empty and up to 20 seconds between pitches with at least one runner on base.  Testing in the Minor Leagues involved 14 seconds with the bases empty and 18 seconds (19 seconds in Triple-A) with at least one runner on base.
    • A pitcher may disengage the rubber (timer resets) twice per plate appearance without penalty.
      • Subsequent disengagements result in a balk, unless an out is recorded on a runner.
      • The disengagement count resets if the runner advances; testing in the Minors had no reset until the following plate appearance. 
    • A hitter must be in the batter’s box and alert to the pitcher with at least eight seconds remaining.  Testing in the Minor Leagues included nine seconds remaining.
    • A hitter receives one timeout per plate appearance.
    • Umpires will have authority to provide additional time if warranted by special circumstances (e.g., the catcher makes the last out of the inning and needs additional time to get into defensive position).
      • KEY STATS:
        • Compared to last season, the Pitch Timer has reduced the average nine-inning game time by 26 minutes (from 3:04 in 2021 to 2:38 in 2022) while increasing action on the field.
        • Stolen base attempts per game have increased from 2.23 in 2019, at a 68% success rate, to 2.83 in 2022, at a 77% success rate.
        • In its most recent week of play, Minor League Baseball has averaged just 0.45 Pitch Timer violations per game.
  • Defensive Shift Restrictions: A set of restrictions will return the game to a more traditional aesthetic by governing defensive shifts, with the goals of encouraging more balls in play, giving players more opportunities to showcase their athleticism, and offsetting the growing trend of alignments that feature four outfielders:
    • Lateral Positioning: Two infielders must be positioned on each side of second base when the pitch is released.
    • Depth: All four infielders must have both feet within the outer boundary of the infield when the pitcher is on the rubber.
    • No Switching Sides: Infielders may not switch sides unless there is a substitution.
      • KEY STAT: Defensive alignments that feature four players in the outfield increased nearly 6x across MLB since the start of the 2018 season.
  • Bigger Bases: With the goal of improving player safety, the size of first, second, and third base will increase from the standard 15” square to 18” square. 
    • Bigger bases are expected to have a positive impact on player health and keeping Major Leaguers on the field.
      • KEY STAT: Base-related injuries decreased by 13.5% in the Minor Leagues this season, including declines at every level of the Minors. 
    • Bigger bases will reduce the distance between first and second and between second and third base by 4.5”, thereby encouraging offensive Clubs to attempt to steal bases more frequently and generally to be more aggressive on the basepaths.

The committee unanimously voted in favor of the larger bases, although as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the players voted against both the pitch clock and the limitation of defensive shifts. The MLBPA confirmed as much in a since-issued statement, which reads:

“Players live the game — day in and day out. On-field rules and regulations impact their preparation, performance, and ultimately, the integrity of the game itself. Player leaders from across the league were engaged in on-field rules negotiations through the Competition Committee, and they provided specific and actionable feedback on the changes proposed by the Commissioner’s Office. Major League Baseball was unwilling to meaningfully address the areas of concern that Players raised, and as a result, Players on the Competition Committee voted unanimously against the implementation of the rules covering defensive shifts and the use of a pitch timer.”

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MLBPA Receives Majority Support To Represent Minor Leaguers, Requests Recognition From MLB

By Steve Adams | September 6, 2022 at 11:59pm CDT

The Major League Baseball Players Association announced Tuesday morning that a “significant” majority of minor leaguers have signed authorization cards in favor of the MLBPA creating a minor league bargaining unit. The MLBPA has formally requested that MLB recognize its new effort to represent minor leaguers. Evan Drellich of The Athletic first reported that the union had received majority support from minor leaguers on the matter and requested voluntary recognition from MLB.

The MLBPA first sent authorization cards to minor league players last week — a first step toward unionizing minor league players who have previously lacked the representation and collective bargaining capabilities enjoyed by Major League players.  If MLB chooses not to acknowledge the the MLBPA as the new bargaining unit for minor league players, the MLBPA can (and surely will) file a motion with the federal National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). That will prompt an election among the minor league players, and if there’s a majority among those who vote in that election, the NLRB would subsequently require Major League Baseball to recognize the MLBPA as the bargaining unit of minor league players.

It’s another notable step in what appears to be a fast-moving process. MLB has yet to comment on the unionization effort whatsoever, so it remains wholly unclear when or whether the league will provide a response. The MLBPA can push forward and pursue an NLRB-prompted election at any time, so if commissioner Rob Manfred and his team continue to remain silent on the matter, the union can still advance the process. An MLBPA official told MLBTR last week that the proposed unionization efforts would give minor leaguers their own separate bargaining unit under the MLBPA umbrella, adding that any minor league CBA would be negotiated independently of the Major League CBA that was completed earlier this year.

“Minor league Players have made it unmistakably clear they want the MLBPA to represent them and are ready to begin collective bargaining in order to positively affect the upcoming season,” MLBPA executive director Tony Clark said in a statement released Tuesday morning.

Drellich’s piece contains quotes from several minor league players on the matter and notes that there would still be some hurdles regarding the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League, as the league is not based in the United States. Still, Drellich emphasizes that the players union has told minor leaguers that it plans to attempt to bargain over the working conditions of DSL players as well.

The move to add the majority of minor league players to the MLBPA ranks would see union membership skyrocket from 1,200 — the 40 players on the 40-man rosters of all 30 MLB teams — to more than 5,000. The MLBPA has already bulked up its staff in preparation for the move, announcing last week that it had hired every employee from Advocates for Minor Leaguers as a new full-time employee of the MLBPA.

Currently, neither the salaries nor benefits of minor league players are collectively bargained. Minor league players are only paid during the season, and their minimum salaries range from $400 per week in the lower levels — where seasons are only three months long — to $700 per week in Triple-A (via the Associated Press).

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MLB Reportedly Proposes $180MM First Luxury Tax Threshold, $100MM Salary Floor To MLBPA

By Anthony Franco | August 18, 2021 at 11:00pm CDT

With the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire on December 1, 2021, Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have been in talks regarding the potential structure of the next CBA. MLB made its first core economic proposal to the MLBPA this week, report Evan Drellich and Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic.

MLB’s proposal included a lower threshold for taxes on team spending, with teams subject to a 25% tax on any spending above $180MM, report Drellich and Rosenthal. There would be three additional tax brackets at some point above that mark (for a total of four tax brackets), with the tax rate increasing as teams hit those higher overage levels. As a trade-off, MLB proposed that teams be subject to a $100MM salary minimum. MLB’s entire proposal was presented as a package deal as opposed to a series of one-by-one potential provisions.

For comparison’s sake, the current CBA contains three tiers of luxury tax penalization. For the 2021 season, the first tier begins at $210MM and contains a 20% tax on overages up through $230MM. There’s a 32% tax on overages between $230MM and $250MM and a 62.5% tax on any payments beyond $250MM. Those penalties escalate for teams that pay the tax in multiple consecutive seasons.

(Under the current CBA, a team’s luxury tax number is calculated by tabulating the average annual values of its financial obligations — not its actual payroll in any given season. It’s not clear whether MLB’s proposal would continue to be based on contracts’ AAV’s as opposed to current-year obligations).

The luxury tax has become an obvious deterrent to spending for most high-payroll teams. Only the Dodgers have been comfortable blowing by the thresholds to incur the loftiest penalties associated with the third bracket this season. Teams like the Padres, Yankees, Phillies, Red Sox and Astros all have CBT numbers hovering right around the $210MM lowest threshold and either contemplated or were seemingly dead-set upon avoiding the tax during their offseason and trade deadline maneuvering. Of that group, it seems only San Diego might have exceeded the threshold by a narrow margin, although it’s not yet clear that’s the case. Even if the Friars did go over the first threshold, they didn’t exceed it by enough to incur particularly meaningful financial penalties this year.

Given that the luxury tax has served as a de facto salary cap for some of the league’s top spenders, it doesn’t seem likely the MLBPA will be particularly enamored with the idea of lowering that first threshold such a substantial amount. Indeed, it’s widely expected the MLBPA will be pushing for a dramatic increase to those thresholds during the current session of CBA talks. MLB also offered the union an option to leave the luxury tax status quo, report Drellich and Rosenthal, although it’s not clear what other conditions would be involved in that scenario.

MLB is obviously aware that getting the MLBPA’s assent on lower tax thresholds will be extremely difficult (if not impossible). That’s likely the reason for the inclusion of the proposed salary floor, with the league reasoning that setting a minimum payroll would increase some teams’ spending and more equally divide team payrolls for competitive balance reasons. Twelve teams (Pirates, Indians, Marlins, Orioles, Rays, Mariners, Tigers, A’s, Royals, Rangers, Diamondbacks and Brewers) entered the 2021 season with an actual payroll below $100MM, in the estimation of Cot’s Baseball Contracts. (Seven had an estimated luxury tax payroll below $100MM). The league’s proposal contained some method of redistributing tax money collected from the higher spenders to spur spending among those lowest-payroll clubs, Drellich and Rosenthal report.

Of course, there’s plenty about the league’s proposal that’s unknown. Drellich and Rosenthal note that it’s unclear how the league would penalize teams that don’t reach the spending minimum, or even in what season that minimum would go into effect. It’s also debatable whether the presence of a salary floor would actually increase free agent spending or truly disincentivize teams from conducting long-term rebuilds. It’s equally easy to envision a low-payroll rebuilder acquiring an underperforming veteran player on an expensive contract — along with prospect talent — from a high-payroll club looking to duck under the tax threshold.

For instance, the Padres and Rangers reportedly had pre-deadline discussions about a deal that would’ve sent first baseman Eric Hosmer (who’s on an eight-year, $144MM contract) and top outfield prospect Robert Hassell III to Texas to acquire Joey Gallo. That obviously didn’t come to fruition, but it’s a useful illustration of the creative ways teams could work around the lower tax thresholds/salary floor. The Rangers picking up Hosmer would’ve pushed their payroll up over $100MM while shedding money from San Diego’s books — without having any direct impact on the free agent market.

Of course, there’s still a few months for the two sides to bandy about proposals before the expiration of the current CBA. The MLBPA made its first proposal back in May, report Drellich and Rosenthal, with one emphasis being on earlier arbitration eligibility for younger players.

There’s obviously a significant amount of each proposal that hasn’t yet been made public. Drellich’s and Rosenthal’s report sheds some early light on both sides’ vision for the long-term future of the sport, but there’ll be plenty more back-and-forth between the league and the MLBPA over the coming months in what’s widely expected to be a fairly contentious negotiation. The full piece is worth a perusal for subscribers to the Athletic interested in the sport’s labor dynamics.

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MLBPA Files Grievance Against MLB

By Steve Adams | May 14, 2021 at 10:58pm CDT

The Major League Baseball Players Association has filed a grievance against the league, claiming that MLB did not negotiate in good faith to play as many games as possible in the shortened 2020 season, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports. The MLBPA grievance seeks as much as $500MM, which Sherman suggests is the equivalent of roughly 20 games of additional pay.

At this point, the timeline for a potential resolution isn’t fully clear. Evan Drellich and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic report that the grievance was actually filed two weeks ago, adding that the league has argued in response that 60 games was the maximum possible due to health and safety reasons. Of course, the league itself submitted proposals for larger numbers of games, although it did so with additional salary cuts which MLB knew to be a nonstarter in talks with the union.

Both the Post and the Athletic note that the league has asked the union to fast-track this grievance so that a resolution may be reached in advance of the looming expiration of the collective bargaining agreement on Dec. 1, 2021. However, it also seems viable that the union could drag out the process so that an eventual concession to drop the grievance can be used as a negotiating ploy in those CBA talks.

The crux of the grievance seems to stem from the language in the March 26 agreement reached between MLB and the MLBPA last year. That agreement stipulated that the league would make its “best efforts to play as many games as possible.” Less than a month after striking that accord, the two sides were embroiled in a new debate, once it had become clear that it would not be possible to have fans in attendance. The union left open a window for owners to pull back on their commitment to prorated salaries, as language within the March agreement stated that the two sides would “discuss in good faith the economic feasibility of playing games in the absence of spectators.”

The result was an ugly, months-long debate that played out in the public eye. A new agreement was never reached, and commissioner Rob Manfred eventually implemented a 60-game schedule under the terms of that March agreement. Players were paid the prorated version of their salaries — roughly 37 percent of what they initially stood to earn with a full, 162-game slate. Service time was also prorated, such that one day on the MLB roster in the shortened schedule amounted to roughly 2.77 days of service time. Incentive clauses and the conditions to trigger vesting options in player contracts were prorated as well.

Now, it seems the two sides are set to spar once again over the vague and nebulous language in that March agreement — this time against a more immediate backdrop of collective bargaining negotiations. If the two sides can’t agree on some form of settlement, the grievance will eventually be heard by a three-person arbitration panel. Because one member of that panel represents the union and another represents the league, the outcome will effectively boil down to the ruling of the lone, mutually agreed-upon third party.

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Quick Hits: Cubs, Hoerner, Opening Day, Home Run Leaders By State

By TC Zencka | December 26, 2020 at 12:32pm CDT

Nico Hoerner earned a Gold Glove nomination after notching five Defensive Runs Saved in just over 200 innings at the keystone in 2020, but his versatility will make him more than a bit player for the Cubs moving forward. Thanks to his plus glovework, the 23-year-old was worth 0.7 bWAR in 2020 despite slashing .222/.312/.259. His defensive prowess will keep his name on the lineup card while his bat works to catch up, writes Russell Dorsey of the Chicago Sun-Times. Hoerner played five positions including centerfield – the Cubs’ most glaring long-and-short-term hole. Ian Happ was the bulk starter in center in 2020, but he could move to left now that Kyle Schwarber was non-tendered. The Cubs are likely to add at least another name to their outfield mix, but don’t be surprised to see Hoerner continue to get looks there in the spring while competing with David Bote for regular second base reps.

As we look forward to the new year, let’s see what else is happening around the sport…

  • With two COVID-19 vaccines now on the market, owners are considering a push to delay the season opener until May. In their minds, a significant enough number in vaccinations could justify the delay, writes Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com. Players have thus far resisted any attempts to push back the start of the season, however. The MLBPA wants a 162-game season rather than face another year of prorated pay. With coronavirus cases still on the rise, however, it’s prudent for MLB to take whatever precautions necessary to limit the risk of breakouts in 2021.
  • MLB.com’s Director of Research and Development Daren Willman put together a fun chart to peruse this holiday season (via Twitter). Williams posted the current home run leaders by birth state, and there are definitely some places for a young go-getter to take their local crown. Maine, Alaska, and New Hampshire each have career leaders with less than 100 home runs, while Duke Sims landed exactly at the century mark to leader all Utahans. Paul Goldschmidt (Delaware), Bryce Harper (Nevada), Kurt Suzuki (Hawaii), Mike Trout (New Jersey), and Ryan Zimmerman (North Carolina) could add to their leads in 2021, while the recently-retired Alex Gordon ended his career as Nebraska’s all-time home run king. Executive Director of the MLBPA Tony Clark also makes the list as Kansas’ all-time leader.
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Chicago Cubs MLBPA Alex Gordon Bryce Harper Coronavirus Kurt Suzuki Mike Trout Nico Hoerner Paul Goldschmidt Ryan Zimmerman Tony Clark

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Latest From Tony Clark On MLBPA, MLB Negotiations

By TC Zencka | November 7, 2020 at 6:39pm CDT

Despite the antagonistic tone of the negotiations that spilled so frequently into the public square last winter, the MLBPA is hopeful that the sequel this winter will strike a more amicable (and private) tone, per the Athletic’s Evan Drellich.

At the same time, Drellich provides interesting comments from executive director of the MLBPA Tony Clark, who spoke harshly of last winter’s mediation in saying, “In essence, going back to March, what manifested itself thereafter, we view largely as a lockout. There are lines that can be drawn between what happened this year and what may have happened historically. But I continue to remain optimistic that as a result of that experience, we have an opportunity and take advantage of the opportunity, to work through our respective disagreements to the benefit of the game moving forward.”

It’s unclear what to glean from Clark’s retroactively labeling the coronavirus shutdown as a work stoppage, but if nothing else, his point highlights the severity of those negotiations. It also puts in no uncertain terms the length the players are willing to go in order to have their needs met.

Clark says the players are open to any conversation this winter, broadly speaking, but he also made a point to note the MLBPA’s general skepticism about the financial numbers being put forth by MLB in regards to their operating losses from 2020. The owners’ use of the word ’debt,’ for example, Clark explains as an evocation that misconstrues the true function of debt for businesses the size of MLB.

Issues like the universal designated hitter and extra-innings rules appear on the back-burner priority-wise for the MLBPA. One might expect a less steadfast approach from players in those areas. The MLBPA won’t be as flexible on issues of player pay. Players expect a battle in securing a full 162-game season in 2021, especially if fan attendance remains a non-guarantee. The owners will want the players to take some part in the financial risk of putting on a season when fans may not be allowed to attend, but the players don’t appear willing to bear that burden unless provided with more substantive proof of the operating losses suffered by MLB and the owners.

Until some of the numbers being put forth by MLB can be verified in some form or fashion, the owners’ financial concerns are likely to fall on deaf ears. MLB has been hesitant to provide more detailed financials to the players, however. This saga is likely to continue well into the winter, much as it did prior to the truncated 2020 season.

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Rob Manfred Discusses Rule Changes, Playoff Expansion

By TC Zencka | October 23, 2020 at 4:04pm CDT

OCT. 23: Manfred told Dan Patrick “all of the COVID-related rule changes,” including extra innings, the universal DH and seven-inning doubleheaders, are likely to “return to the status quo, absent an agreement with the players association” in 2021. Of course, a lack of a universal DH could have an effect on quite a few free agents, including Nelson Cruz. Meanwhile, Manfred once again did admit he would like to expand the playoffs, but not necessarily to 16 teams.

OCT. 22: Commissioner Rob Manfred hopes that a couple of 2020’s changes will stay as long-term additions to the MLB season, per Ronald Blum of the Associated Press. Manfred spoke in favor of an “expanded playoff format,” though he was careful to say that the 16-team format from this year might be a bridge too far.

Manfred would aim for something between the standard 10-team format at this year’s 16-teamer. He has previously advocated for a 14-team postseason, which would reward the top team in each league with a bye through the first round, with the bottom-6 playoff teams facing off in an elimination round much like this year’s Wild Card format to create the 4-team Divisional match-ups in each league.

Manfred is also in favor of keeping the man-on-second extra innings rule. Blum notes that the longest games this season were a pair of 13-inning affairs. The rule certainly drove more action in extra innings, and though eliminating the couple of marathon-type extra innings games would seem to be a small victory in the grand scheme of things, MLB can check that box, it would seem.

Once the season ends, Manfred will be back to the laborious process of negotiation with Head of the Players’ Union Tony Clark. It won’t be a total back-to-the-drawing-board situation, but given the temporary nature of this season, the changes that were made will need to be re-addressed this winter.

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