Major League Baseball proposed a 154-game regular season during a collective bargaining session with the MLBPA today, according to an announcement on
The current 162-game schedule was fully adopted in 1962. The regular season previously had 154 games, hence the league’s formulation of a return to that length. The MLB announcement mentions the institution of a “Standard weekly day off beneficial for players’ health» according to the 154-game schedule.
The elimination of eight regular season games corresponds to the increase in the number of Division Series games. Expanding this round from a five-game series to a seven-game series would mean a maximum of eight additional playoff games. Both of these changes would take place in 2029, according to the league’s proposal.
In a follow-up article on X, the league notes that the longer playoffs made possible by the shorter regular season would add additional rest days to the postseason schedule. That would give pitchers extra rest and limit the number of weekday playoff games, the league says.
“A shorter regular season makes October even better for our fans: with fewer weekday afternoon games, a longer Division Series and more opportunities to see the game’s best pitchers on the biggest stage.” said MLB spokesperson Glen Caplin, relayed by Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
Selection of playoff opponents would take place in the Wild Card and Division Series rounds, according to the league’s proposal. In the first round, the No. 3 seed could choose between playing the No. 5 seed or the No. 6 seed. In the Division Series, the top seed would have the option to choose which of the Wild Card round winners they wanted to face. If accepted, the change would take effect for the 2027 season.
The setup would have made for some interesting decisions in the playoffs. Instead of playing the White Sox, the #3 Astros could have chosen to play the Red Sox. After the Braves and Padres advanced in the Wild Card round, the top-seeded Brewers could have opted to face Atlanta instead of San Diego.
The league’s proposed schedule remains conditional on the implementation of the salary cap/floor system, as outlined in their announcement. This is the main point of friction between the two parties. With the salary cap stipulation attached, it is unlikely that the MLBPA will accept the proposals. The union responded with a statement on X sharing this sentiment.
“The players will weigh in on these proposals and we will respond to them at the negotiating table” the statement read in part. “Unfortunately, the league has once again made it clear that all of its proposals are contingent on players agreeing to a salary cap, a system that destroys player rights and compensation..”
Photo courtesy of Brett Davis, Imagn Images
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