The MLB Players Association believes it’s just as strong as ever, despite heading into critical labor negotiations while in the midst of a massive and embarrassing leadership shift.
The union is preparing to vote late Wednesday on a new top executive after the troubled departure of former leader Tony Clark. That shift is happening as Clark is under investigation for alleged financial mismanagement of licensing revenue, as well as an inappropriate relationship with his sister-in-law—also a union employee.
Even with that happening, deputy executive director Bruce Meyer insisted the union is just as unified and prepared as before to go into collective bargaining talks with MLB owners.
“I’m not going to say this is a great thing; this is unforeseen,” Meyer said. “At the end of the day, leadership is important and leadership comes and goes, but what remains is the players. Our union is strong and always has been strong because of the solidarity of our members, of our players. That is going to continue. … Anyone that underestimates the strength and solidarity of the MLBPA does so at their own peril.”
Meyer, however, acknowledged the difficult circumstances surrounding Clark. In addition to the interpersonal matters, Clark has been under federal investigation since last year by the Eastern District of New York, along with the organization itself, over complaints of alleged self-dealing and misuse of licensing money.
“Just on a personal level, I think we’re all fairly devastated by the things that have happened in the last 48, 72 hours,” Meyer said Wednesday. “I’m not going to go beyond that in terms of personal feelings. But again, it’s fair to say that we were all personally upset, concerned about Tony. But I think [the resignation] was something that the players determined had to happen at this particular point in time. We’ll move forward, and again, be as strong as we always were.”
Negotiating Matters
Regardless of the outcome of the MLBPA leadership vote, players are entering a potentially industry-shaking labor negotiation with team owners.
Both sides are pushing for big changes, and on the management side, calls are rising for a salary cap or a cap-like structure. The intent is to even out a situation where the Dodgers, the sport’s current two-time defending champion, are set to nearly quintuple the 2026 player payroll of MLB’s lowest spender, the Marlins.
The union, however, has firmly resisted salary caps for its entire six-decade existence, previously going through several prior work stoppages in part to fight against them. The MLBPA has long pointed to recent issues in cap-based systems in other major sports, such as frequent cap-driven roster cuts and contract restructurings in the NFL. Talks are expected to pick up shortly after Opening Day.
“Our position and the historic position of this union for decades on the salary cap is well known,” Meyer said. “It’s the ultimate restriction. It is something that owners in all the sports have wanted more than anything, and baseball in particular. There’s a reason for that: because it’s good for them and not good for players.”
