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After much speculation and difference in opinions over the years, the MLB and MLBPA (Major League Baseball Players Association) finally agreed to a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) deal to keep the labor peace between both parties until December of 2026.
This deal comes after the league did a memorandum deal to prevent a prolonged lockout for the 2022 season that ended up being 99 days.
Baseball has had many lockouts in its long-tenured history, with the two most prominent coming in 1981 (canceled 712 games) that lasted 50 days (Jun. 12, 1981 -Jul. 31 1981) and led to divisional winners from the first and second halves of the season to a one-off expanded offseason.
The 1994 strike was the worst and longest of them all, lasting 232 days (Aug.12, 1994-Mar 31,1995) that forever changed baseball as if a nuclear war happened, harming baseball and causing 938 games to be canceled… The largest in the history of the sport.
Here are more details on the MLB’s latest CBA:
Teams are guaranteed at least seven open days over the final 67 days of the season, with at least three open days in the final 32 days of the regular season. That was not a provision in the previous CBA.
Minimum salaries in the new CBA are $700,000 in 2022, $720,000 in 2023, $740,000 in 2024, $760,000 in 2025, and $780,000 in 2026.
A player who is signing a second major league contract is guaranteed the following minimum salaries in the minor leagues:
2022: $114,100;
2023: $117,400;
2024: $120,600;
2025: $123,900;
2026: $127,100.
For players on their first MLB contract, their minor league minimum salaries are:
2022: $57,200;
2023: $58,800;
2024: $60,300;
2025: $62,000;
2026: $63,600.
The dates for players and teams to exchange salary arbitration figures are
2023: Friday, January 13
2024: Friday, January 12
2025: Friday, January 10
2026: Friday, January 9
If a player has reached an arbitration deal on a contract before it’s heard by the arbitration panel shall be eligible for termination pay if the player is terminated for failing to display proficient skills or ability prior to Opening Day according to Baseball America https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/details-from-the-new-2022-2026-collective-bargaining-agreement/.
Other perks will include a weekly allowance of $369.50, while players who live away from headquarters will have an added incentive of $65.60 weekly, teams obligated to help players find housing during spring training, training meals, and other stipends for making the All-Star game.
With a new CBA deal finalized, the MLB can now breathe for the time being over the next couple of years. With labor peace and new rules implemented this season, such as a pitch clock to speed up the game, let's hope they continue to build on the positive momentum of building up the game.