MLB Contracts

When you reach the big leagues, you’ll sign a new Uniform Player Contract. More importantly, your terms of employment will be governed by a document called the Basic Agreement, otherwise known as the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). The concept of a baseball CBA came about in 1968 after the formation of the Major League Baseball Player’s Association (MLBPA), a.k.a. the players union, two years earlier.
The fact that the MLBPA was accepted as a union by the National Labor Relations Board obliged baseball’s owners to negotiate the terms of employment for big league players through collective bargaining.

If the two sides can’t reach an agreement when the baseball CBA runs out, that’s when you see a work stoppage (either a strike or a lockout). A new deal was recently agreed upon by both sides, which ensures that MLB will continue to operate unimpeded for the next several years. You can see the current CBA at the website for the MLBPA at www.mlbplayers.com.

To learn all about the baseball CBA, other types of baseball contracts, and what you need to know to maximize your chance of signing one, consider purchasing “Live The Dream: Get Paid to Play Baseball.”

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