11/03/2026 01:45:00
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11/03 13:44 CST Major League Baseball proposes delaying salary cap start until
2028 in talks with players
Major League Baseball proposes delaying salary cap start until 2028 in talks
with players
By RONALD BLUM
AP Baseball Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --- Major League Baseball proposed delaying the start of a salary
cap until 2028, saying teams have too many commitments for next season that
wouldn't allow them to reduce spending quickly enough.
A day after the start of free agent negotiations for the 2026-27 offseason,
owners on Tuesday proposed to players that the sport adopt a hard cap of $258.2
million for 2028 and a mandatory floor of $180.2 million, using luxury tax
payrolls with average annual values.
"We recognize that clubs will need a full offseason to prepare to operate
within the cap and floor system," MLB spokesman Glen Caplin said in a
statement. "This proposal would allow a smoother transition into the cap and
floor system without delaying key player benefits, including earlier free
agency, a $1 million minimum salary, a 30% increase to the pre-arbitration
bonus pool and transactional reform that will reduce roster churn."
Baseball's five-year labor contract expires Dec. 1 and management is expected
to lock out the union. MLB hasn't proposed a salary cap since the negotiations
that led to a strike in 1994, and the players' association has said it never
will accept a cap.
MLB proposed a one-time bonus payment to players as part of the plan, using
money from luxury tax proceeds that the current labor agreement earmarks for
players' 401(k) accounts. The bonus would be based on 2026 service time, with
those in the majors for at least 172 of the 187-day regular season getting
$285,000. The bonus would be $213,400 for three-quarters of a year, $142,300
for half and $71,100 for a quarter.
Management said eight teams would have to reduce current payroll by a combined
$528 million to get under the 2028 cap: Boston, the Chicago Cubs, the Los
Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets and Yankees, Philadelphia, San Diego and Toronto.
Twelve teams would have to increase spending by $636 million to reach the
floor: the Athletics, the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Colorado,
Miami, World Series champion Milwaukee, Minnesota, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, AL
champion Tampa Bay and Washington.
MLB said it was willing to discuss phase-in timelines and procedures. It would
keep the current luxury tax system and revenue-sharing plan for 2027 with the
same thresholds and tax rates as in 2026, then centralize MLB media revenue for
2028.
Owners said they would accept the union's proposal to reduce service time for
free-agent eligibility from six seasons of service to five for players at least
30 years old but would give a player's team the right to make a qualifying
offer as under the current free-agent rules. If a player rejects the qualifying
offer, he would be eligible for salary arbitration.
MLB would accept the union's proposal to eliminate qualifying offers for other
free agents.
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