After a grueling 162-game, six-month grind, we’ve finally arrived at the threshold of Major League Baseball’s (MLB) post-season. This year has written some unexpected storylines, such as the Chicago White Sox staging a historic rebound after a dreadful last three years and the Milwaukee Brewers’ pursuit of a deep playoff run.
Yet, even against the backdrop of this unbridled excitement, a dark cloud hangs over the game.
The current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between players and owners will expire at the end of this season, specifically on December 1, 2026. As the two sides have been unable to design even the framework of a new deal thus far, there is a very real possibility that next year’s Spring Training will be interrupted by a work stoppage.
Sadly, this is not a situation that is new to MLB. Thirty years ago, mistrust and tension between owners and players culminated in a disastrous strike, and the alienation of millions of fans.
Let’s take a quick look at what happened during the seasons of 1994 and 1995, and discuss what MLB can do to avoid the same devastating results this time around.
As the 1993 baseball season ended, players and owners found themselves at an impasse regarding a new labor agreement. The previous deal had just expired, and major tensions were developing between the two opposing camps.
On June 14 1994, the owners of MLB’s then-28 teams presented the Players’ Association with their initial contract offer. This plan, which included a new revenue-sharing model and a hard salary cap, was almost immediately rejected.
What happened next is a case study on how not to make deals in business.
Here are some of the important dates in what would ultimately prove to be a catastrophe for all involved parties.
July 13, 1994: Donald Fehr, the executive director of the MLBPA (Major League Baseball Players Association), floats the possibility of a player strike.
July 28: Frustrated players set a strike deadline of August 12.
August 1: Owners withhold a required payment to players’ pension plans. This infuriates the union and inflames tensions to a much greater degree.
August 12: Following through with previous threats, the players officially go on strike. The last game prior to the strike is played on August 11.
September 14: With no progress being made in negotiations, Acting Commissioner of Baseball Bud Selig officially cancels the rest of the season, including the post-season. For the first time since 1904, the World Series will not be played.
February 1995: Owners open Spring Training with replacement players. The MLBPA responds by declaring that if replacement players are used in regular-season games, the strike will continue into the 1995 season.
March 31: Future Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor rules that owners have acted illegally, and issues an injunction that restores the previous CBA. This decision is upheld by the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
April 2, 1995: After 232 days of striking, regular players finally return to MLB teams, but without the included salary cap that the owners desired. Chalk one up for the employees.
No one team exemplified the tragedy of the 1994 season more than the Montreal Expos.
The team was enjoying its best season ever, and was poised for a run to the World Series. Alas, the cancellation of the MLB post-season spelled curtains for Montreal, sending them into a downward spiral which culminated in relocation to Washington DC (as the Washington Nationals).
Here are some of the other season and career-altering consequences of the strike.
The New York Yankees, in the midst of a breakout year, saw their post-season dreams end. At the time of the strike, the Yanks had the best record in the American League, and led their division by six and a half games over the Baltimore Orioles. To this point, New York had not made a post-season appearance since 1981.
Tony Gwynn Sr. of the San Diego Padres was robbed of a chance to finish the season with a batting average of over .400. If Gwynn had been able to keep up his red-hot hitting, he could’ve become the first player to achieve this feat since Ted Williams in 1941.
Matt Williams of the San Francisco Giants was on track to challenge the single-season home run record of 61. Regrettably, the Bay Area slugger missed out on a great chance to eclipse then record-holder Roger Maris. At the time of the strike, Williams had 43 homers.
Don Mattingly was also having a historic season as part of a fast-rising Yankees club. It seemed as if the Bronx Bomber would make it to the playoffs for the first time in his career. Mattingly would have to wait, though; he finally made his post-season debut a year later, in New York’s ALDS loss to the Seattle Mariners.
Needless to say, longtime devotees of MLB weren’t too happy as 1995 began. There was an obvious atmosphere of anger on the part of the fans, many of whom vowed never to watch another MLB game.
Eventually, this fury would die down considerably, thanks in part to Cal Ripken Jr. of the Orioles. On September 6 1995, Ripken played in his 2,101st consecutive game, eclipsing a career mark set by Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig.
Nevertheless, it would take quite some time for MLB to recover from the aftermath of 1994, and the lost post-season that followed.
The ultimate lessons of the 1994 strike are these:
To avoid a repeat of history, MLB must remember the events that occurred 30 years ago. 1994 is calling, and it has an important message for the league of 2027.
As far as a lockout is concerned (to paraphrase Nike), “just don’t do it”.
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