If you were looking for good news to come out of Thursday’s meeting between Major League Baseball and the MLBPA, then you are going to be disappointed. The reality was always that making real progress in the first discussion of core-economic issues in over a month was never likely. The hope is that today’s session spurs more talks.
The league made a proposal at today’s meeting and the reaction among the union was not positive according to a report by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Baseball labor update: There is no deal. There never was going to be one today. MLB made a proposal. The reaction among the players was not positive. Few on either side expected it to be. The question is how soon the MLBPA counters. Spring training starting on time is in peril.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 13, 2026
As The Athletic’s Evan Drellich points out, expectations were low going into today’s meeting. We are about a month away from when pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to Spring Training so the heat will likely get turned up in coming weeks.
MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported that the league proposed a higher minimum salary and more money for players qualifying as Super 2s, but that the union saw the overall offer as disappointing.
MLB raised pay for younger players (higher minimum salary and more money for Super 2s) in their proposal. Players union saw overall offer as “disappointing.” No word about a counter yet. Long way to go (but fortunately there’s still time)
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 13, 2026
It is impossible not to be concerned with how things stand currently. The gap between the two sides is wide and there has been little to no movement in that regard. The reality is that things are probably going to have to get worse before they can get better.
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