Sources familiar with the situation said that Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association reached a tentative agreement on a new collective-bargaining agreement.
Spring training camps will open on Sunday, free-agent signings and trades will abound, and baseball will attempt to return to some semblance of normal after months of fraught negotiations.
The league made a proposal that bridged the significant gap in the competitive-balance tax, a key issue in the end stages of talks. The league removed another two series from the schedule on Wednesday because of a dispute over an international draft, but those issues were resolved Thursday morning and the league delivered a full proposal to the union, which it voted to accept.
The basic agreement governs almost all aspects of the game, but baseball's core economics were front and center in the labor talks. The minimum salary for players with less than three years of major league service will be raised to $700,000, and a bonus pool worth $50 million will be distributed among those younger players who have yet to reach salary arbitration.
The MLBPA agreed to expand the playoffs to 12 teams. There will be patches on jerseys and decals on helmets for the first time.
Other elements of the deal are included.
There is a 45 day window for MLB to implement rules changes, including a pitch clock, ban on shifts and larger bases.
The designated hitter will be adopted by the National League.
A draft lottery was implemented to discourage tanking.
inducements to discourage service-time manipulation.
The number of times a player can be optioned to the minor league is limited.
The talks on a new basic agreement began last year and moved slowly before the previous version expired. The league and union made little progress in the months prior to the lock out. The possibility of losing regular-season games grew stronger as a result of the 43-day gap between negotiations and the opening of spring training.
After a 2016 negotiation that led to drastic economic consequences, players were intent on making significant financial gains beyond 2022. Despite growing revenues, player salaries have dropped over the last four seasons. The rise in franchise values became a cry for players.
The league was content with the current economic system and pushed back on the gains players hoped to make. Giving on the front end of the CBT allowed it to push for smaller year-over-year raises, while the uncapped system allows teams to spend less on older players to balance out the added costs.
Baseball, a game still searching for resonance in an entertainment and sporting world with endless viewing options, avoided a large chunk of the season because of a work stoppage. The free agent period will see stars such as Carlos Correa, Kris Bryant, Freddie Freeman, and others sign. First baseman Matt Olson, third baseman Matt Chapman and a number of starting pitchers could be traded by the Oakland A's.
Baseball will return in April hoping for five years of labor peace, five years of prosperity and five years to erase the ugliness of this winter.
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