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How MLB's Proposed Changes Would Impact the A's
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- How MLB's Proposed Changes Would Impact the A's
(Troy Taormina-Imagn Images)
We are less than two months away from the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expiring on December 1, which is when a lockout is expected to take place this offseason. How many games (if any) will be missed is still a big question that won't have a clearer answer until the two sides are closer to an agreement.
On Thursday, Major League Baseball's latest proposal was made public, as reported by multiple national writers . Here are the biggest changes, and how they would impact the Athletics in the coming years.
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It should be noted that these adjustments to the game would also be contingent on the MLBPA agreeing to implement a salary cap, which the players have been very much against for decades.
"The reason a cap system is so scary for us is that once they get you in the cap system, they're never going to let go," A's player representative Zack Gelof told us back in June .
MLB Proposes 154-Game Schedule
In addition to the proposed 154-game schedule that would begin in 2029, there would be games added to the Division Series, bumping it from a best-of-five series to a best-of-seven series. The 2029 season also coincides with when MLB's next media rights deal is set to begin.
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On the one hand, fewer games should limit player injuries, which would be helpful for an A's roster that felt like a revolving door at times. This would mean planned off-days most Mondays, giving players a regular rest day. Managers also wouldn't have to navigate long stretches of bullpen usage, which would mean less of a roster churn for fresh arms.
On the other hand, fewer games would be yet another way for owners to limit how much they pay the players, even with the assurances from the league.
"No downward adjustment will be made to player salaries," MLB said in the news release. "Thresholds for bonuses, options and similar provisions will be adjusted proportionally."
What this could mean is that current players who are signed would not have their salaries prorated to fit a 154-game schedule. Many would be skeptical that those trims wouldn't be made in future salary negotiations.
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If any version of this is enacted, it will be important to keep an eye on how postseason money is split between the league/owners and the players. This could be another way for owners to take a bigger share of the revenues within the game.
During the 2029 season, the A's would be looking at 77 home games instead of 81. With a brand new ballpark, that would presumably mean slightly higher prices around the ballpark to account for the revenue of those lost four home dates.
The same would go for every team around the league, but for the A's in particular, they'd be in a new market and need to maximize bodies in the ballpark to ensure their footprint in Vegas lasts beyond the honeymoon period.
Teams Could Choose Postseason Opponent
Owners are also proposing that the highest-seeded team in each of the first two rounds (Wild Card and DS) would be able to pick their opponents. In the opening Wild Card round, the top two teams in each league would still have a bye, leaving the third and fourth seeds to pick their opponents. Essentially this would be the third seed picking its opponent and the fourth seed facing the leftover team.
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This would be a way for the lowest-ranked division winner — this season it would have been the Houston Astros in the American League — to pick their own opponent in the opening round. They ended up facing the sixth-seeded Chicago White Sox and got swept in two games.
There are certainly seasons where a team charges into the postseason in September, claiming that final wild-card spot, and it would be beneficial to avoid the hottest team if possible.
The obvious downside here would be creating bulletin board material for the teams that are ranked lower, making this more of a disadvantage or a disincentive to finish with a better record in the standings.
The way that the 2026 season played out, if the A's were to win the AL West with the worst record among division winners — like Houston this season — they could be placed in that third seed with the decision of which team to face in their control.
