The Major League Baseball Players Association made headlines earlier this week when it was announced that the union has net assets of approximately $519 million. Now it’s worth comparing this to the situation MLB owners are in before a potential lockout in 2026.
According to USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale, MLB owners have $2 billion in war reserves stashed away ahead of a possible lockout in December. This comes as the league and the MLBPA have reportedly not participated in preliminary discussions on a new collective bargaining agreement after this season.
The Athletic’s Evan Dreilich previously reported that the MLBPA came into the year with $519.3 million in net worth, which represents a 47 percent increase from its net worth at the end of the 2024 season. While the players union is preparing its members for the league to be all out when the CBA expires Dec. 1, Dreilich said MLB owners have set aside $75 million per club in case regular season games are missed.
Not all MLB owners will have that much if necessary. According to Dreilich, the league has an investment fund (Baseball Endowment LP) that it can use to provide even more money to owners and clubs if the lockout lasts longer.
During the previous lockout, which delayed the start of the 2022 MLB season, all 162 regular season games were played. The last time regular season games were wiped out due to MLB’s work stoppage was during the 1994 strike, when the final third of the season and the World Series were canceled.
It has been widely reported that MLB owners are going to make an unprecedented effort for a salary cap in the next CBA, which the MLBPA has repeatedly strongly opposed. As we saw in 1994, players were willing to sit out games when owners pushed for the MLB salary cap.
Unfortunately, it is increasingly likely that there will be an MLB lockout in December 2026 that will immediately impact free agency and possibly wipe out a portion of the 2027 regular season. While both sides have taken a stand and prepared themselves financially for a work stoppage, the biggest loss could be fans and stadium workers, as well as the entirety of Minor League Baseball.
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