MLBPA Rejects League’s CBA Offer, Calls It ‘Flat Out Bad for Baseball’

The MLB Players Association didn’t just say no to the league’s latest collective bargaining proposal. They went ahead and called it out publicly, and they did not hold back.

According to a press release shared by Bob Nightengale on social media, the MLBPA responded to the league’s new offer by labeling it “flat out bad for baseball.” That’s not the kind of language you see in a typical back-and-forth negotiation. It’s more like a warning shot.

The union’s main argument? The proposal would slash more than a billion dollars in player compensation over the next five years, with $400 million of that coming out of 2026 and 2027 alone. They also pointed to a provision they say would block high school and junior college players — anyone under 20 — from entering the domestic draft entirely. The MLBPA wrote that this would “destroy fundamental player rights and remove talent from our sport.”

International draft is a flashpoint

One of the league’s bigger ideas was an international draft. But the MLBPA took serious issue with how it was structured. They said the proposal as written would essentially wipe out an entire year of international signings by delaying the first draft until September 2027 at the earliest, possibly slipping into March 2028.

The union’s statement described it as “denying young international players the ability to start their professional careers.” That’s a tough look for a league that’s been trying to grow the game globally.

Both sides have been going back and forth for a while now, and there’s still no clear end in sight. Commissioner Rob Manfred and the owners have been pushing for changes, but the players keep pushing back. The MLBPA said they remain “committed to bargaining in good faith and leaving baseball better than they found it.” Then they added that the league’s proposals “fall woefully short.”

So where does that leave things? In limbo, mostly. Nobody is walking away from the table, but nobody is close to a deal either. The next CBA has to work for both sides, and right now they’re not even in the same building on the big issues. Fans will just have to wait and see who flinches first.