A work stoppage stemming from a lockout or strike would damage Major League Baseball just as the sport is enjoying renewed growth in revenue and popularity, two of the game's all-time greats said.
The current collective bargaining agreement between MLB and the MLB Players Association expires Dec. 1, 2026. Some owners have floated a salary cap — MLB is the only major men's North American league without one — a proposal players oppose, raising the prospect of a labor dispute ahead of the 2027 season.
"It'd be bad, because I've been through every one of them," Dusty Baker, who managed for 26 seasons and debuted as a player in the strike-hit 1972 season, said at a charity event in Beverly Hills, California last weekend.
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