The Major League Baseball Players Association raised several new issues today as part of its third official proposal in ongoing CBA negotiations. These latest proposals relate to “transactions, rosters, and access to data,” as described in the union’s press release. Below are the most consequential:
- Expanding MLB active rosters from 26 to 28 (14 pitcher maximum) for the first 15 days of the regular season
- Allow for placement of players on the 60-day IL as early as the November non-tender deadline
- Reduce the number of in-season optional assignments per player from five to three
- Accelerate players’ eligibility for the Rule 5 draft and move the Rule 5 draft up to late November in the final season of a CBA
- Provide MLB pay for players who are optioned in September
- Provide an extra four days of MLB service time and salary for pitchers who are optioned to the minors within a week of the All-Star break or immediately after a game in which they went three-plus innings or threw at least 50 pitches (as reported by Ronald Blum of The Associated Press)
- Enable all players to access club-collected non-proprietary performance data and video
Evan Drellich of The Athletic and Alden González of ESPN report additional details on the union’s desired changes — most of which are designed to limit roster movement and raise salaries for players on the fringes of the 40-man roster. They’re certainly not as significant sticking points as the game’s core economic issues, yet they’re all player-friendly measures for which MLB would want some kind of concession.
From the league’s perspective, the most important issue is a salary cap and floor, while MLBPA has maintained that a salary cap is a non-starter. The union is seeking significant increases to the major league minimum salary, the minimum tender in arbitration, and the pre-arbitration bonus pool, as well as a lower service time threshold to reach free agency for players over 30.
As one would expect from a union proposal, these measures would benefit players on a smaller scale. For instance, expanding rosters from 26 to 28 for the first 15 days of the season would create 60 new Opening Day roster jobs and a total of 900 additional days of major league service time and salary.
The second and fourth proposals go hand in hand; each would increase the chances of players being added to their team’s 40-man roster earlier in the offseason. This could help both free agents and prospects.
Currently, players cannot be placed on the 60-day injured list until the beginning of Spring Training. Those recovering from long-term injuries (e.g. pitchers rehabbing Tommy John surgery) count against a club’s roster all offseason. Moving the 60-day IL eligibility up by a few months would open more 40-man spots, which gives teams more ability to protect prospects from the Rule 5 draft and/or sign fringe free agents to a big league deal.
The union proposed moving players’ eligibility for the Rule 5 draft up by one year. At the moment, players who begin their professional careers at 18 or younger (i.e. most high school draftees and international amateur signees) are eligible for the Rule 5 draft after five seasons in the minors if not added to the 40-man roster. Those who sign at 19 or older (i.e. most college draftees) are Rule 5 eligible after four years. The union’s proposal today would move those up to four and three years, respectively. Being on a 40-man roster accelerates a player’s timeline to a major league job.
Moving the Rule 5 draft up by a week in CBA years is designed to ensure it happens every fall. The Rule 5 draft takes place in early December at the Winter Meetings. The CBA window usually expires on December 1 every fifth season, at which point the league is expected to immediately institute a lockout which freezes all offseason activity. That resulted in the cancelation of the 2022 Rule 5 draft and will do the same this year unless it’s moved up; the MLBPA proposed moving this year’s Rule 5 draft to November 24.
Once a player is on his team’s 40-man roster, he typically has three option years (although teams can be granted a fourth option year on a player under certain circumstances based on their minor league experience). In an option year, a player can be sent down to the minors without first being placed on waivers up to five times. Players without guaranteed contracts do not earn a major league salary when they are optioned to the minors. They also don’t accrue major league service time.
That’s why the union is trying to reduce how often a player can be optioned. It’s also why the union wants players to continue to earn a major league salary and major league service time if they are optioned for roster reasons rather than performance reasons. It’s common to see a pitcher optioned in favor of a fresh arm after making a spot start or tossing a few innings of mop-up work.
The final proposal is less directly related to salary than any of the others, but it might be the most interesting. The wording suggests that players do not currently have access to all of the information that their teams use to make decisions about them – decisions such as when to add them to the 40-man roster, when to option or recall them, and what to offer them in arbitration. Access to this information would help players make their cases for arbitration hearings, contract negotiations, and potential grievances.
Drellich and González also reported on a few more proposals that were not included in the union’s press release. Several of them relate to the trade deadline. For one, the MLBPA has requested that the trade deadline be scheduled at least two days apart from the first-year player draft signing deadline. They also want to move the deadline window up by a week.
Under the current CBA, the league can set the trade deadline at any date between July 28 and August 3. The union is proposing that the window be changed to July 21-27. Presumably, this is because players would prefer to know if and where they’re going to be traded a little sooner and have more time to settle in with their new clubs. In addition, the MLBPA is requesting that players who have been outrighted off a 40-man roster are still eligible to be traded after the deadline. This would increase the chances of those players getting another big league opportunity in August and September.
Other small requests include a religious accommodation list, a designated third emergency catcher, and a formal rule allowing teams to send out-of-options veterans for a ramp-up stint in the minors with their consent if they sign within 10 days of Opening Day. According to Blum, they also proposed a potential extended minor league rehab window for pitchers coming back from shoulder surgery or a thoracic outlet procedure, similar to the current setup for those rehabbing Tommy John surgery.
Meanwhile, Drellich reports that MLB made a minor proposal of its own on Wednesday related to the Joint Drug Agreement. The league wants to expand the list of banned substances while giving itself more flexibility to communicate with teams when one of its players has failed a test but is going through the appellate process. Those interested are encouraged to read the full columns from ESPN, The Athletic and The AP for a full rundown.
