MLB wants max 5 years for FAs changing teams
Key takeaways
- The potential change to free agency comes as the league addressed reserve clause issues in a Thursday meeting with the MLBPA and would take effect after the 2027 season.
- The league's proposal includes raising the minimum salary from $780,000 to $1 million in 2027 for players with at least two years of service time.
- Additionally, players who reach five years of service time by age 30 would become eligible for free agency, a provision the union first put forth recently as part of its own CBA proposal.
Why this matters: a sports story that could shift standings, legacies, or fan conversations.
The potential change to free agency comes as the league addressed reserve clause issues in a Thursday meeting with the MLBPA and would take effect after the 2027 season.
The league's proposal includes raising the minimum salary from $780,000 to $1 million in 2027 for players with at least two years of service time. Any player with zero or one-plus years of service time will receive $1 million if they receive a full year of service which includes $900,000 minimum salary plus an automatic $100,000 bonus from the Pre-Arbitration Bonus Pool. The increase in the minimum is the largest year-over-year increase in MLB history, according to league data. Minimums would increase in future years along with the payroll floor and ceiling.
Additionally, players who reach five years of service time by age 30 would become eligible for free agency, a provision the union first put forth recently as part of its own CBA proposal. Currently, players of any age need six years of service time before becoming a free agent. That system has been in place since the advent of free agency in MLB in 1976.